Tiger Dining, the Office of Sustainability and the waste reduction and recycling department have been working to remove all Styrofoam from Auburn's campus. The last to go were Chick-fil-A's Styrofoam cups.
"It's one of those processes that we kept chipping away at, and we eliminated it everywhere we could," said Glenn Loughridge, director of campus dining. "We just had that last domino fall."
These groups meet monthly to discuss projects to make Auburn as sustainable as possible.
The cost of removing the Styrofoam cups will cost Chartwells an additional $5,000 per year, but Courtney Washburn, recycling coordinator at the waste reduction and recycling department, said she believes the benefits outweigh the cost.
"I think it makes a statement, and it's a step in the right direction," Washburn said. "The fact that the University is making a stand to not purchase this product is almost priceless."
According to Washburn, the process of making Styrofoam causes air pollution and possibly cancer.
Washburn also said the disposal of Styrofoam takes more effort than paper.
"Styrofoam tends to be kind of bulky in waste bins, it doesn't squish down like paper cups do," Strickland said. "More workers have to check them, and more trips to the landfill have to be taken."
However, the new paper cups cannot be recycled because of the wax coating used to contain the liquid.
Though the cups cannot be thrown in the recycle bin, they leave a smaller environmental footprint than Styrofoam, according to Amy Strickland, program manager at the Office of Sustainability.
"Even though we can't recycle the paper cups, they've been replaced with something that will more readily break down," Strickland said.
The waste reduction and recycling department said they have been working to begin a composting program by participating in a compost pilot program with Village Dining.
In one month, Village Dining collected 4,621 pounds of compostable food.
"Compost is definitely in the works, but we aren't there yet," Washburn said.
Loughridge said his goal is for campus to be as sustainable as possible.
"Our goal is to continue toward zero waste, and that's not going to be something that appears overnight," Loughridge said. "It's a process and it's something we have to work for. We can start here, and maybe we can reach out into the greater community."
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
