RecycleMania recycles 90 million pounds

RecycleMania wrapped up its 11th annual recycling competition in early April. RecycleMania is an eight week challenge that ignites classic college rivalries, rallying students, faculty and staff to increase on-campus recycling rates beyond their collegiate competitors.

This year, 91 million pounds of recyclables and organic materials were recovered, which prevented the release of nearly 270 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.

The competition, which extended from February 6 through April 2, includes eight categories. The colleges and universities that took home top prizes in the three primary categories are:

•Grand Champion – (determined by the percentage of overall waste recycled): California State University-San Marcos (79.69 percent) – San Marcos, California.

•Per Capita Classic – (determined by total pounds of recyclables collected per person): Union College (55.69 pounds) – Schenectady , New York.

•Waste Minimization – (determined by the lowest overall amount of waste recyclables and trash per person): North Lake College (3.07 pounds) – Irving, Texas.

RecycleMania is an independent program of the RecycleMania Steering Committee. The competition is made possible with the sponsorship support of SCA Tissue, The Coca-Cola Company, Alcoa Foundation, Waste Management, Keep America Beautiful and the American Forest & Paper Association. Program management is provided by Keep America Beautiful with additional program support from the United States EPA’s WasteWise program and the College and University Recycling Coalition.

Top schools in each category earn “bragging rights,” while the winners of each are recognized with an award made of recycled glass.