Zero Waste

We're working to build long-term support for a zero waste country by starting on campus and in our communities, putting the solutions in place and educating students about how we can reduce, reuse and recycle.

We're trashing the planet, literally.  From the process of extracting resources to producing the endless array of products on store shelves to throwing away the items we don't want anymore, Americans produce an amazing amount of waste with real consequences for our health, environment and economy.  

In Connecticut, we burn over two million tons of trash every year - more per capita than any other state.  Incinerator pollutions releases toxins and carcinogens into the air we breath - and wastes stuff we could compost or recylce!

Our waste is huge and increasing because our economy is setup as a throw-away system.  Companies that make the products we buy aren't responsible for the costs of disposing them once they're no longer usable.  That leads to a situation where it's more profitable to produce an endless stream of single or few use products—from bottles we can't refill to mops that can only clean up once.  It also means that there's no disincentive to creating products that are toxic or can't be broken down like most televisions and cell phones.  Finally, there is no reason to cut down on the excessive amount of packaging used to market products on store shelves.

Instead of focusing on managing trash, we need to figure out how to avoid waste in the first place and recycle or re-use the resources in our current waste stream.  This approach, known as zero waste, seeks to create a closed loop. 

We're starting on campus, by getting UConn and Trinity to commit to a plan to get to zero waste.  At the same time, we're working with the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection to help Connecticut reach its goal of doubling the amount of waste we keep out of landfills and incinterators over the next decade.