Boston College’s dining halls, cafe's and mini marts serve more than 20,000 meals per day. On upper campus, Carney’s is one of the most popular dining spots, and serves 4,000 meals a day. Across campus, bustling food stations at Lower Live offer fresh chicken, steak, seafood and a daily salad bar. Julianne Stelmaszyk and the culinary team operate the giant food system like a well-oiled machine.
Their mission: reduce waste.
In 2014, Boston College piloted the Leanpath system in one of its biggest kitchens, which serves 7,000 meals a day. Front-line kitchen workers began measuring and tracking food waste each night. Food waste dropped by 60 percent, preventing 580,116 pounds of wasted food, when the university embraced the system.
When Stelmaszyk came on board as Boston College Dining’s sustainability manager, two problems were apparent: single-use plastic waste and food waste.
“About 60 percent of our customers take items to go,” says Stelmaszyk, who worked as a vegetable farmer, private chef and sustainable food educator throughout Boston and Rome, Italy, prior to working at Boston College. “The front of the house waste is single-use products versus actual food waste. Most of the food waste we deal with is back of house, which gave us an opportunity.”
Sean Canny manages one of two of Boston College’s busiest dining halls. Canny established a Stop Waste Action Team (SWAT) and encouraged kitchen workers to step up to the plate to reduce food waste.
"We came up with the idea to ask the front-line kitchen workers to come up with solutions to food waste and they blew our minds,” Canny says.
The primary waste culprit was the salad bar. The culinary team came up with the idea to use smaller dishes on the salad bar, which gave the appearance of being “full” while having less food out at a time. In two weeks, the team cut salad bar waste in half and eventually reduced it by 95 percent.
The team also started repurposing unserved meatballs and chicken on pizza and making ice cream sandwiches with leftover cookies.
Commenting on Leanpath, Stelmaszyk says, “As the managers log in and look at real time items that are being weighed and documented, they can see salmon got thrown out or composted, but it looked perfectly edible. They go directly to the cooks to see what we can do different.”
Stelmaszyk says the most challenging part has been cutting down on single-use plastic waste. Boston College offers GreenToGo, a reusable, returnable takeout container service, but it’s up to students to choose the sustainable option.
“Students seem to care a lot about single-use plastic, but then the reality is they choose single-use,” Stelmaszyk says. “We’re starting to think about how many plastic forks we use every year and how can we share that with students so they can be aware of that impact they’re having.”
This year, the team is looking into how to reduce food waste within the institution’s catering operation.
“There’s inevitably a lot of waste that’s generated from these offsite events,” Stelmaszyk says. “We’re on the path of finding a way we can measure that waste and find a solution.”
As a farmer and chef, food for Stelmaszyk has always been an area where she can make the biggest impact on the world around her. She says institutions and the people who work within them have a role beyond just serving meals every day, hinting at food sourcing and waste management.
“I think chefs have reached that enlightenment and see their role as a leader of their team and what influence they do have,” Stelmaszyk says. “I think that’s starting to trickle into other spaces in the food system.”
Stelmaszyk credits Beth Emery, director of Boston College Dining, for allowing the culinary team to take control of their kitchen.
“She understands sustainability is no longer a nice to have, it’s a need to have,” Stelmaszyk says. “Her emphasis on the fact that this is really important, and this is not something going away has allowed the team to feel really empowered to take leadership roles and find solutions in their day-to-day operations.”
Sustainability is ingrained into the culture on campus. Walking around, students have access to compost, recycle and landfill bins. Stelmaszyk fills the student body in on the college’s longtime compost program and gets them involved with food rescue, which donates food every week to homeless shelters and soup kitchens in the Boston area.
“We’re either putting in in the compost or donating it at the end of the night,” Stelmaszyk says. “We’re finding a place where we can repurpose it. No one wants to throw away food they've purchased."
The dangers of improper drug disposal
Consumers should be aware of drug disposal best practices to protect communities and the environment.
The unfortunate reality when it comes to drug disposal is that many consumers don’t know the right way to discard their old prescriptions. Many forget about existing drugs in the home, while others opt to flush or throw away their unwanted pharmaceuticals. The result is often pills that end up in landfills, the water supply or in the hands of a child or potential abuser.
To protect the environment and our communities, consumers should be aware of potential disposal complications and be educated on the proper methods of disposing unneeded drugs.
What not to do with old prescriptions
Many people grew up in households where it was customary to toss old prescriptions in the trash, leave them laying around the house or flush them down the toilet or sink; however, these practices can have serious repercussions. There are three main reasons why these means of disposal are both inadequate and dangerous.
1. It has a negative environmental impact
Improper prescription disposal can lead to drugs leaching into the water system. In recent years, a number of pharmaceutical-related chemicals have been found in waterways across the country and even in our drinking water.
According to the University of Illinois, these chemicals can be traced back to drugs such as antibiotics, anti-depressants, steroids, seizure medications, painkillers and more. These chemicals not only have the potential to harm humans, they also threaten marine ecosystems. Studies have shown that these prescription chemical byproducts are causing changes in the behavior, reproduction and growth of many species, specifically frogs and fish.
To understand the dangers of flushing pills down the toilet or throwing them in the trash, it is important to first understand how prescriptions end up in our waterways in the first place.
Medication can reach water in a number of ways. Shockingly, 40 percent of the nation’s water supply is permeated by pharmaceuticals through aquifers deep underground, according to an Associated Press investigation.
It’s not just consumers who are improperly disposing of medications, either. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), livestock farms, hospitals and nursing homes are all large contributors of the prescriptions that end up in our waterways. Since septic systems and wastewater facilities are not designed to remove medicinal chemicals from water, there is no current treatment to remove traces of pharmaceuticals from treated water. Even if you choose to throw your prescription pills away in the trash, they’ll still likely end up being pumped to wastewater treatment plants.
2. It can lead to accidental poisoning
When old drugs are left insecurely in a home rather than disposed of properly after their use, it’s easy for children or pets to get access to them and face accidental poisoning.
Children are naturally curious. Pills that may be colorful or look like candy can especially present a poisoning threat to young children when left around the home. Each year, more than 60,000 kids ages 5 and under unintentionally take a medicine or overdose on it. Even more alarmingly, studies have found that 95 percent of unintentional medication overdose visits to emergency rooms are caused by a young child who got into medicine while a parent or caregiver wasn’t looking.
3. It can open the door to abuse
Improper drug disposal can make it easy for would-be abusers to access medications that are no longer needed. With the opioid epidemic rising throughout the country, it’s more important than ever that drugs aren’t within easy reach of someone who might abuse them.
According to the Rockville, Maryland-based Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), many teenagers mistakenly believe prescription drugs are safer or less harmful than other kinds of drugs. However, what is unrealized by many is that the fastest-growing drug problem in the United States isn’t cocaine, heroin or methamphetamines—it’s prescription pills. Knowing the basics of prescription disposal can help individuals better manage their medications to make it less likely that old drugs aren’t abused.
How to properly dispose of unwanted medications
There are many reasons why someone might want to get rid of old pills. Perhaps an individual no longer needs their prescription or maybe they didn’t use quite as many pills as they thought they would and they’ve expired. Regardless of the situation, it’s imperative individuals follow disposal best practices.
1. Drug take-back programs
Several times per year, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) hosts a National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day to provide a safe, convenient and responsible way for disposing medications.
Since its inception in 2010, the DEA has collected more than 9-million pounds of medicine from the public on drug take-back days. Moreover, the program has seen an increase in participation, as last fall’s event collected a record-setting 912,305 pounds of prescription drugs.
While this is happening at the national level, many states and counties are getting involved in take-back initiatives by launching their own programs in an effort to reduce the public health and environmental impacts of unused drugs.
Earlier this year, five New York state hospitals collected unused pharmaceuticals for free as part of a six-month drug take-back pilot program. This program encouraged residents to drop off expired or unused medications via collection kiosks and prepaid mail-back envelopes for free.
To help individuals find take-back programs near their home, the DEA’s National Take-Back Day website features a collection site locator and has more information on national, state- and county-specific take-back programs.
2. Drug collection kiosks
Many retailers and hospitals are joining in on community drug collection efforts by installing drug collection kiosks at convenient locations.
For example, Deerfield, Illinois-based Walgreens and Lake Forest, Illinois-based waste disposal company Stericycle Environmental Solutions recently teamed up to install more than 600 drug collection kiosks in Walgreens stores nationwide to provide a safe, convenient and free way for consumers to return unused medication. Discarding old medicine in these kiosks is as simple as putting a letter in the mailbox. Plus, the availability of these kiosks helps ensure consumers have access to safe, easy and free drug disposal.
Not only are kiosks convenient for regular customers, they also present higher volume potential, increased store foot traffic and can be used as a public service marketing tool.
Consumers wanting to participate in these programs should be aware of the type of drugs that can and cannot be accepted. Most medications, vitamins, ointments, liquids and lotions can be accepted, while needles, inhalers, hydrogen peroxide and illegal drugs cannot.
3. Smarter purchases
Of course, the easiest way to cut down on prescriptions in the waste stream is by citizens making more conscientious purchases. When sick, consumers should only buy the medicine they need instead of stocking up. Consumers should also skip bulk purchases and ask their doctors for smaller amounts of medication when the situation dictates.
By making more mindful disposal decisions, consumers can better manage their prescriptions in a socially and environmentally conscious manner. The end result is that households and communities throughout the country can benefit from reduced contamination and safer neighborhoods.
As of Jan. 1, New York City stores, food service establishments and mobile food commissaries may no longer offer, sell or possess single-use foam food containers, according to the New York City Department of Sanitation. These include foam takeout clamshells, cups, plates, bowls and trays. Additionally, manufacturers and stores may no longer sell or offer for sale loose fill foam packaging (“packing peanuts”) in the city.
New York City enacted the ban after determining that dirty, postconsumer, single-service foam food and beverage containers cannot be recycled in a way that is economically feasible, environmentally effective and safe for employees as part of the city’s curbside recycling program.
Affected businesses, agencies and nonprofits will have a six-month warning period lasting through June 30. Following the warning period, Notices of Violation will be issued and civil action may be taken.
Beginning July 1, establishments found in violation of the foam ban will receive fines for each Notice of Violation issued within a 12-month period in the following amounts:
$250 for the first offense;
$500 for the second offense; and
$1,000 for the third and subsequent offenses.
Some exceptions include foam containers used for prepackaged food that were filled and sealed prior to the ban; foam containers used to store raw meat sold from a grocer; and foam blocks used as protective packaging in shipping.
Ocean Cleanup system heads inland for repairs
The system is tackling plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
The Ocean Cleanup's System 001, a giant machine known as “Wilson” out at sea cleaning up plastic pollution, has returned to port for repair after less than three months out in the Pacific Ocean.
Officials announced on Ocean Cleanup’s blog that on Dec. 29, 2018, during a regular inspection of the cleanup system, an offshore crew discovered that an 18-meter end-section had detached from the rest of the system. They speculated that material fatigue and stress concentration caused a fracture, though they cautioned that the exact cause is unknown.
No material was lost, and both the 580-meter main section and the 18-meter end section are completely stable with all bulkheads intact. The blog post also says there were no safety risks for the crew, environment or passing marine traffic.
Wilson launched from the San Francisco Bay on Sept. 8 and reached the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, an area containing litter nearly twice the size of Texas off the coast of California, Oct. 16, 2018.
Wilson consists of a 600-meter-long U-shaped floater that sits at the surface of the water and a tapered 3-meter-deep skirt attached below. The floater provides buoyancy to the system and prevents plastic from flowing over it, while the skirt stops debris from escaping underneath. The system is designed to capture plastics ranging from small pieces up to large debris, including massive discarded fishing nets, which can be tens of meters wide. Ocean Cleanup says that a full-scale cleanup system roll-out (a fleet of approximately 60 systems) could clean 50 percent of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in five years.
However, the breach in equipment brought Wilson inland sooner than expected.
“We are, of course, quite bummed about this as 1) we hoped to stay out for a bit longer to collect more data on plastic-system interaction, and 2) it introduces an additional challenge to be solved,” Ocean Cleanup Founder and CEO Boyan Slat wrote on the blog post. “At the same time, we also realize that setbacks like this are inevitable when pioneering new technology at a rapid pace. Being in port provides us with the opportunity to make upgrades to the system with the aim of solving the plastic retention issue, which we previously reported.
“… Although we would have liked to end the year on a more positive note, we believe these teething troubles are solvable, and the cleanup of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch will be operational in 2019,” Slat continues. “The fact that the cleanup system orients itself in the wind, is able to follow the waves well and is able to catch and concentrate plastic gives us confidence in the technology.”
Slat says Wilson will be back out to sea when the weather is conducive to sailing.
NYC waste and recycling services industry to realign under NWRA chapter
The agreement will realign NYC’s commercial waste and recycling service companies under the organizational structure of the NWRA NYC Chapter.
The realignment of NWRA and NYRWM was made possible by a combination of new NWRA national leadership and a resolution adopted by the NWRA NYC Chapter in May 2018 that endorsed maintaining the open-market system and rejecting Mayor Bill de Blasio’s zone-franchising proposal for the city.
“I am pleased that the entirety of New York City’s waste services industry will realign with our New York City Chapter. Our industry is stronger when we work together. We look forward to supporting our new members and advocating for solutions affecting our industry,” NWRA President and CEO Darrell Smith says.
The goal of this realignment, according to the organizations, is to unify and strengthen the industry’s voice and advocacy efforts on a wide range of issues of concern to the industry, principally the current debate over whether—and how best—to advance the industry’s operations to meet the city’s new environmental goals while maintaining the benefits of the existing open-market system.
When completed, the NWRA New York City Chapter will represent more than 50 companies, most of which are direct service providers licensed by the city’s Business Integrity Commission (BIC).
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