Emptying the Trash

There is a place off Old State Road 37 where a rusted fence, tangled with weeds and dead branches, is lined with barbed wire. Dozens of repeating signs are posted along the way.\n"Danger." "Keep Out."\n"No Trespassing, Hunting or Fishing, Violators Prosecuted Under Penalty of Law."\n"PCB Contamination Area, Keep Out, City of Bloomington Utilities."\nOn the other side is a limestone-brick building painted with graffiti. The door is smashed in, the light fixture torn away. Beyond is a field of rocks and dirt. The ground is littered with piles of rubble and rusted piping.\nThis is the site of the late Monroe County landfill after the City of Bloomington was forced to shut it down in January.\nSince then, trash collected from the IU campus is transferred to the Hoosier Disposal transfer station, said Greg Fichter, assistant director of Building Services. From there it is transported to a landfill near Terre Haute, more than 60 miles away.\nThe IU Physical Plant sends two packer trucks out daily to pick up trash from all academic buildings on campus. \nThe University averages about 4,900 tons of trash taken to the landfill each year, or about 13.5 tons per day, Fichter said.\nThe City of Bloomington collected 7,118 tons of trash in 2003, said Julio Alonso, director of Public Works. IU produces more than half of that amount.\nThree custodians are employed at the IMU to take out the trash daily. Ryan Andrews, one of the IMU custodians, fills two or three 55-gallon garbage cans every day, he said.\nStudents are no exception.\n"We produce so much trash," said junior Mary Zonca. \nZonca lives in a house with three other women. They fill around three big garbage bags a week, she said.\n"We recycle everything we can," she said. "We have separate bags in our kitchen where we toss recyclable plastics and paper products. We had to go get a bin from the (city) for it."\nBloomington is unique for its recycling program because recycled products are collected by the city for free, every other week.\nThe residence halls are currently in the middle of revitalizing their own recycling program. Steve Akers, Residential Programs and Services assistant director of environmental operations, is working with the Residence Halls Association to improve the system.\nThe success of the program varies from place to place. Bins fill so fast at Willkie Quad that Hoosier Disposal is called to pick up the bins sooner than the regular pick-up date, Akers said.\n"Some of the centers are doing really well," Akers said. \nBut others need help.\n"I don't (recycle) here because it's more of a hassle," said freshman Stephanie Mayotte, who lives in Briscoe Quad. "Sometimes it's hard to remember to do it when the bins aren't right there."\nThe program has also attempted to counteract the enormous increase in trash that is produced at the end of the school year. In recent years, bins have been set up to collect items that students would normally throw away before leaving for home.\nPossessions such as computers, stereos, lamps and bedding are then taken to different missions such as the Salvation Army.\nAt the end of the day, leftover food from the residence halls is picked up by an agency. The goods are then distributed to different shelters around town.\n"It's really a matter of education," Akers said. "It's not just on students and it's not just on faculty ... It's really everybody who needs to keep it in line."\n-- Contact staff writer Brad Keist at bkeist@indiana.edu.