The UNM Recycling Program, which began in the spring of 2003, is now diverting more than half of the waste the university generates from the Cerro Colorado landfill. That’s because the recycling program is extensive and recycles an amazing variety of materials.
Some of the recycling is internal. Brush, tree limbs and other green waste from campus landscaping is placed in compost piles. The same goes for sludge taken from the UNM Duck Pond.
Other waste such as scrap tires, motor oil, batteries and electronic scrap is sent to firms that specialize in specific kinds of recycling. UNM recycles more than a dozen kinds of plastic, paper and cardboards.
For the 2007 calendar year UNM recycled 1,754.43 tons of material. Resource Conservation Manager Linda McCormick says, “The state has set a recycling goal of ten per cent and nationally about 30 per cent of material is recycled. We’ve exceeded both the state target and the national recycling average.”
Anyone with questions about UNM Recycling can call Linda McCormick at (505) 269-6131 or email her at lindamcc@unm.edu..