From composting biodegradable material to sending unsold meals to area food banks, the University of 棉花糖直播 at Lafayette is making strides toward a waste-free campus.
UL Lafayette鈥檚 program was expanded in August at Cajun Field. 棉花糖直播 Ragin鈥 Cajuns football fans had the option of dropping waste into one of two bins placed at stations inside the stadium: one for recycling, another for composting.
Over the course of six home games, 46.8 percent of recyclable and compostable materials was diverted from landfills.
The new composting initiative was added to the University鈥檚 existing recycling efforts.
Items such as paper plates, cups, utensils and drinking straws were sent to the University鈥檚 600-acre Experimental Farm near Cade, La., to be converted to compost.
The farm, which is 15 miles from UL Lafayette鈥檚 main campus, is used for agricultural and sustainability research, education and outreach. It includes acreage for cattle, rice and sugar cane crops, wildflowers and native grasses, managed wetlands, and educational and research facilities.
In addition to providing eco-friendly fertilizer that will be spread on crops and vegetation at the farm, the compost will be used to educate students about its benefits. Compost, for example, releases less nitrogen into the air than chemical fertilizers, said Brian Kibbe, farm manager.
The composting process typically takes about two months, depending on factors such as size of the pile, materials it contains and weather, Kibbe explained. 鈥淒ecomposition happens more quickly in hot, dry weather,鈥
Refuse collected at football games is only one part of the farm鈥檚 composting 鈥渞ecipe,鈥 Kibbe said. 鈥淗ay, grass and tree clippings, livestock manure and agricultural waste from nearby sugar cane mills are also part of the mix.鈥
One item that didn鈥檛 get heaped on the compost pile: food that went unsold at football games, according to Gretchen Lacombe Vanicor, director of the University鈥檚 Office of Sustainability.
Dishes such as jambalaya, pasta, salads, hamburger patties 鈥 a total of 1,727 meals 鈥 were given to area food pantries. The project was coordinated with help from the University鈥檚 food service provider, Sodexo, and Second Harvest Food Bank in Lafayette.
鈥淩ather than throw food away, we thought, 鈥榃hy not distribute the leftover meals to help feed people?鈥欌 Vanicor said.
Beyond diverting trash from landfills and providing food for the hungry, the program offers service opportunities. About 160 students worked inside the stadium and mingled with tailgaters during football games to provide information to fans and guide them to the proper bins. Student volunteers also inspected materials collected to ensure a stray piece of plastic hadn鈥檛 made its way into the wrong container.
Vanicor expects the Zero Waste pilot program to grow. 鈥淚f it continues to be successful 鈥 and I鈥檓 confident that it will 鈥 we鈥檒l start looking at ways it can be expanded to other athletic events and other parts of campus,鈥 Vanicor said.
The project is part of the University鈥檚 , which is partially supported by the University鈥檚 Annual fund.
The 鈥渓ab鈥 promotes sustainability research projects for students such as a 鈥渟mart-building鈥 pilot program at Rougeau Hall. Sensors placed throughout that building monitor temperature, humidity and indoor air quality.
Learn more about University eco-friendly efforts at the