MCC Sustainability Efforts for October 2016

October is the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) Campus Sustainability Month. This is a time to focus on our campus sustainability efforts and inspire students to become more active in preserving our environment and being better stewards of our resources.  To read more about AASHE and the Campus Sustainability check out http://www.aashe.org/campus-sustainability-month/.

I.    Did You Know?  MCC’s Emergency Services Education Center received an innovative LEED point for rainwater harvest.  A 40,000 gallon underground rainwater collection tank is located just east of the building.  Rainwater is collected, filtered and pumped for use to flush building restroom toilets and urinals. This results in a significant reduction in cost of water used at the facility and a reduction of the use of city treated water.

II.    Sustainability Activities on Campus this Fall: 
Keep Waco Beautiful Adopt a Street Program: MCC has adopted a segment of north 19th street from Powell Dr. to Lakeshore Dr.  The college has agreed to do a cleanup at least once a quarter with the first scheduled for the week of October 23-28.  All volunteers must sign a release form beforehand and Keep Texas Beautiful will provide the supplies needed for the clean-up. Please contact Donna Wiley at 299-8330 if you are interested in helping with this effort.

MCC’s Bi-annual Shred and Recycle Day this fall semester on October 28 from 7:00 am to noon at the back of the MAC parking lot.  Bring your items from home and work.  For more information, go to America Recycles Day at http://americarecyclesday.org/. 
a.    What if I need assistance with my materials?  For assistance with picking up recyclables before the event, call Sid Ross at 299-8849 or email Sid at sross@mclennan.edu.  
b.    What recyclables can I bring:  Bring paper goods, plastic, metals, cardboard, and corrugated boxes.  No need to remove staples or paperclips.  Plastic containers must be empty.
c.    What recyclables are not accepted?  Please do not bring any electronics, glass, Styrofoam, batteries, tires, appliances, used oil or oil filters, antifreeze, hazardous waste, or carbon paper.
d.    Will my items be shredded on campus?  Shredding does not take place at MCC, and we do not receive a formal document of destruction.  That service costs additional money.  We do receive confirmation that the paper items were shredded upon receipt by Cintas (previously known as Certishred). 
e.    Freecycle/reuse table: De-clutter your space and help us keep good stuff out of a landfill at the same time! Drop off clean, working items that you no longer need.  If you see an item on the table that you want, take it.  It's free.  Any leftover items will be donated to Goodwill.

Habitat Restore 50% Sale:  All items at the Restore will be half price on November 17 from 9 AM to 3 PM.  This is a great place to recycle and use building materials and household items.

Glass Recycling: Cobbs Convenience Center accepts plastic, aluminum and other metal, cardboard, paper, and corrugated box material from anyone, including those living outside the Waco area.  Glass is accepted only from Waco residents.  Cobbs Convenience Center is located at 2021 North 44th Street and is open Tuesday through Saturday (8 am - 5 pm) to drop off your materials free of charge.  For a map to the site and more details go to: http://www.waco-texas.com/solid-waste-recycling.asp

City Free ScrapTire Recycling Day:  The city of Waco has scheduled a special recycle day for tires at the Waco Solid Waste Services parking lot at 501 Schroeder Dr. on Saturday, October 22 from 7 AM to noon (see attached flyer).  This is open to Waco residents only. 

Pharmaceutical Recycling Day: Area police departments are hosting “Unwanted Drug Disposal Day” on Saturday, October 22 from 10 AM to 2 PM to “safely rid” prescriptions and over the counter drugs no longer needed within the community (see attached flyer).  Drop off points include the following locations:

HEWITT POLICE DEPARTMENT	100 PATRIOT COURT	HEWITT	TX, 76643
LORENA POLICE DEPARTMENT	100 N. BORDON ST.	LORENA	TX, 76655
WOODWAY PUBLIC SAFETY DEPARTMENT	920 ESTATES DRIVE	WOODWAY	TX, 76712
WACO POLICE DEPARTMENT	3115 PINE AVENUE	WACO	TX, 76701

Energy Conservation:  A reminder to everyone that continued energy conservation is an ongoing process and to power down computers or any electrical using equipment when not in use.  Take advantage light motion sensors and insure that they are working.

Campus bicycle rental program is alive and well.  This program is available to students, faculty, and staff.  Contact Janice Kasner at the physical plant 299-8863 if interested in renting a bicycle for the fall semester.  Bike rental fee is $10 a semester.

III.    What are your thoughts on our sustainability efforts? 
Check out our website at http://www.mclennan.edu/gogreen/ and our blog at http://mccgogreen.blogspot.com/.

If you would like to join the Sustainability Committee and/or have ideas on how to promote sustainability on our campus, contact Sid Ross at sross@mclennan.edu or Fred Hills at fhills@mclennan.edu.  We are looking for new members and welcome all to our joint work.


Thanks for your support.  It takes the entire College to make sustainability work!

The MCC Sustainability Committee

MCC Sustainability Efforts for August 2016

The Sustainability Committee welcomes all back for a new year and new opportunities for MCC to make its mark as a sustainable campus.  The definition of sustainability as prepared by the World Commission on Environment and Development in 1987 is as follows:  Sustainability is development that meets the need of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”  Our goal is to promote that at McLennan and throughout our community.

If you would like to join the Sustainability Committee and/or have ideas on how to promote sustainability on our campus, contact Sid Ross at sross@mclennan.edu or Fred Hills at fhills@mclennan.edu.  We are looking for new members and welcome all to our joint work.

1. Did You Know?  The MCC grounds crew planted a butterfly garden in the center of campus.  Working with Dr. Stephanie Lockwood, Assistant Professor of Practice in Biology Texas Tech, the site was officially certified as a Monarch Waystation.  The Monarch butterflies will migrate through Waco around October on their way to Mexico.  Currently the garden is receiving visits by many Queen butterflies which people mistake for Monarchs.  The grounds crew is to be commended for creating such a beautiful garden and helping Monarch preservation.
2. Sustainability Activities on Campus this Fall: 
   MCC’s Bi-annual Shred and Recycle Day this fall semester on November 4th from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm at the back of the MAC parking lot.   We are working out the details and will have a firm date by next month’s newsletter.  Bring your items from home and work.  For more information, go to America Recycles Day at http://americarecyclesday.org/. 
   
   Energy Conservation:  A reminder to everyone that continued energy conservation is an ongoing process and to power down computers or any electrical using equipment when not in use.  Take advantage light motion sensors and insure that they are working.
   
   Campus bicycle rental program is alive and well.  The program is available to students, faculty, and staff.  Contact Janice Kasner at the physical plant 299-8863 if interested in renting a bicycle for the fall semester.  Bike rental fee is $10 a semester.
   
   Glass Recycling: Cobbs Convenience Center accepts plastic, aluminum and other metal, cardboard, paper, and corrugated box material from anyone, including those living outside the Waco area.  Glass is accepted only from Waco residents.  Cobbs Convenience Center is located at 2021 North 44th Street and is open Tuesday through Saturday (8 am - 5 pm) to drop off your materials free of charge.  For a map to the site and more details go to: http://www.waco-texas.com/solid-waste-recycling.asp.
3. What are your thoughts on our sustainability efforts?   
   Check out our website at http://www.mclennan.edu/gogreen/ and our blog at http://mccgogreen.blogspot.com/.

Thanks for your support.  It takes the entire College to make sustainability work!

The MCC Sustainability Committee

MCC Sustainability Efforts for April 2016

I.    Did You Know? This spring the Grounds Department transformed the Rock Bed in the heart of campus to a beautiful Butterfly Garden.  Just to the north-east of our lovely seal and beds you will find a mass planting of Red Butterfly Weed (Asclepias curassavica) surrounded by Gregg’s Mist Flower (Eupatorium greggii), with asparagus fern bordering them.  These plants help to attract as well as sustain the Monarch Butterfly, as well as other varieties of butterfly.  The nectar is also attractive to hummingbirds.  We hope everyone enjoys this addition to our landscape!

II.    Sustainability Activities on Campus this Spring: 
a.    RecycleMania at MCC.  Year ending 2015 we had 847,400lbs of trash hauled off by the city.  We recycled using the yellow dumpsters on campus 748,800 lbs. It was picked up by Sunbright and recycled.  We are still tallying the results from this year’s Recyclemania and will share it in the coming month.

b.    Prescription Drug Recycling, April 30: Recycling can be more than separating your cans, glass, and paper goods. Be sustainable and properly dispose of your old prescription drug medication.  By participating in the National Take Back Day, you not only keep prescription drugs out of our water sources and landfills but also out of the hands of someone to whom the drugs aren't prescribed.  Collection date is set for Saturday, April 30th from 10 AM to 2 PM at the following locations:

Collection Site	Address	City
Woodway Public Safety Dept.	920 Estates Dr.	Woodway
Waco Police Dept.	Waco Police Tower, 3115 Pine Avent	Waco
Hewitt Police Dept.	100 Patriot Ct.	Hewitt
Lorena Police Dept.	100 N. Bordon St.	Lorena

Visit www.dea.gov or call 800-9882-9539 for a collection site near you.  In addition, residents of Waco, Hewitt, Lacy Lakeview, Lorena, and Woodway can bring unwanted medications to the Household Hazardous Waste Day on Saturday, May 7.

c.    Household Hazardous Waste Day on Saturday, May 7.  Check waco-texas.com or call (254) 299-2612 for more details.

d.    “Green” Computing Tips:  Help us conserve our computer resources. Please shut down office and lab computers, monitors, and printers on weekends to save energy and to reduce vulnerability to hackers and other malicious activities. For daily energy savings, consider turning off the monitor when not using your PC for more than 20 minutes and turning off both CPU and monitor if not using them for more than 2 hours.  If you will not be on campus this summer, please also consider shutting down your computer and other office electronics until fall for further energy savings. Lastly, Instructors, please help us to conserve energy and extend equipment life by shutting down the document camera and projector in your classroom before you leave.

III.    What are your thoughts on our sustainability efforts?  Check out our website and blog at http://www.mclennan.edu/gogreen/ and http://mccgogreen.blogspot.com/ and see us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SustainabilityMCC.

Thanks for your support.  It takes the entire College to make sustainability work!

The MCC Sustainability Committee

MCC Sustainability Efforts for February 2016

I.    Did You Know?  MCC is now using sustainable organic fertilizer on the main campus.  The organic fertilizer provides natural nutrients to the soil and creates a beautiful lawn.  The grounds department applies this fertilizer during spring break to minimize the odor impact.

II.    Sustainability Activities on Campus this Spring: 
a.    RecycleMania begins February 1st.  RecycleMania is an eight-week competition to promote recycling on campus, and MCC is again enrolled in the Competition Division against other universities and colleges across the U.S. and Canada for the Gorilla Prize (overall tonnage recycled) and the Per Capita Classic.  We’ll record how much we recycle weekly from February 1 through March 29. For more on RecycleMania, visit http://recyclemaniacs.org/

How can you get involved? Use the blue recycling containers in common areas and select classrooms throughout campus.  Some buildings have dedicated recycling stations (ex. Science Building, 1st floor).  If your building or floor does not have recycling bins, contact the Physical Plant at 299-8843.  The large yellow dumpsters across campus (LTC, MAC, etc.) are designated for recyclables as well.  The MCC Library has also put together a GREEN display, highlighting books on sustainability and recycling, as well as displaying the many types of materials suitable for recycling. 

What can you recycle?  Paper, plastic, aluminum cans, and cardboard can all go into any of the blue recycling containers.

b.    Our next Reuse-Recycle-Shred Day is scheduled for March 18 in the MAC parking lot from 8:00AM until 12:00 PM).  Details to follow next month.

e.    Green Week (March 17). MCC will host its Fourth Annual Green Week, a week-long promotion of sustainable lifestyles and current environmental efforts on campus.  Activities for the week will include tree video watching, student produced sustainability video, tree planting, student volunteering, and campus learning plus a campus tree tour.  We will also announce our RecycleMania and CCN results during the final event.  Events include a talk on water conversation efforts in Texas and our Green Week Capstone and Arbor Day Observance.

f.    Tree Campus USA Arbor Day Observance (March 17, 1:00-3:30 PM)  Since 2011, the Arbor Day Foundation has recognized MCC as a Tree Campus USA college.  To earn this designation, schools must establish an advisory committee, a campus tree care plan and program, an Arbor Day Observance, and a service-learning project. Each spring, MCC hosts a special Arbor Day program, which includes invited speakers, a tree-planting ceremony in recognition of faculty or staff, and a student volunteer opportunity to help care for trees on campus. 

III.    What are your thoughts on our sustainability efforts?  Check out our website and blog at http://www.mclennan.edu/gogreen/ and http://mccgogreen.blogspot.com/ and see us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/SustainabilityMCC.

Thanks for your support.  It takes all of us to make sustainability work!

The MCC Sustainability Committee