University of St. Thomas
Background
For more than 20 years the University of St. Thomas – with campuses in Minneapolis and St. Paul – operated a recycling center. Students picked up recyclables daily from campus-wide staging areas and brought them to the recycling center for sorting and preparation for sale to local recycling markets. In 2014, the University of St. Thomas closed its Recycling Center, with the intent to convert to a single stream recycling collection system.
Markets Served:
Approach
The University hired EcoConsilium to help plan and implement the logistics and daily operations of managing a single stream recycling collection system on its two campuses including new and repurposed compactors and materials handling equipment. As part of the project, we developed a Request for Proposals, conducted a pre-proposal meeting and facilitated the evaluation of proposals received. We also oversaw the execution of a new hauler contract for municipal solid waste and single stream recycling services designed for efficient collection, consolidation, and shipment of materials.
Services Provided:
Results
Under the terms of the new contract, single stream recyclables are processed at a local materials recovery facility and municipal solid waste is processed into refuse-derived fuel for use as an energy producing feedstock.
On the Minneapolis campus, loading dock operations were streamlined and compaction equipment was enhanced. On the St. Paul campus, 26 hauler service locations throughout campus were replaced with an inhouse collection system where solid waste and recyclables are collected, consolidated and compacted at one location serviced by the hauler.