MCC Sustainability Efforts for September 2017

The Sustainability Committee welcomes everyone 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 this 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 Elaine Fagner at efagner@mclennan.edu.  We are looking for new members and welcome all to our joint work.

I.    Did You Know?  The college has switched recycle vendors and we now use the City of Waco.  The 90-gallon blue totes in your building will be emptied on Thursdays if they are more than 50% full.  We now have blue dumpsters located in the childcare parking lot, Highlands parking lot, and behind the MAC and LTC.  If you bring recycling from home, please use one of these dumpsters.  As usual, we do not accept glass, used motor oil, or metal other than aluminum cans.  This system is easier for the maintenance crew and requires less handling of materials to be recycled.

II.    Sustainability Activities on Campus this Fall: 
MCC’s Bi-annual Shred and Recycle Day this fall semester is on October 13, from 8:00 am to 12:00 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/. 

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 you are interested in renting a bicycle for the fall semester.  Bike rental fee is $10 per semester.

Aluminum Can Recycling: A student aluminum can recycling program has been implemented for all Geoscience courses starting this semester.  Students recycle 25 pounds of aluminum cans for extra credit and provide a recycling receipt showing the amount of recycled cans.  In turn, students donate 100 percent of the profits from their recycling efforts directly to the Geology Field Course fund.  This project teaches students about the importance of recycling, encourages environmental stewardship, and promotes philanthropy on campus.  Contact Elaine Fagner with questions at 299-8442 or efagner@mclennan.edu.

Community Garden has moved:  The community garden has moved from the Mockingbird/N19th site to the Highlander Ranch at 223 Cobbs Lane. The rainwater harvest system has been moved and installed at the ranch to help reduce the cost of watering the vegetable garden. Contact Ron Chmielewski for more information.  Ron and his agriculture students are spearheading this project.

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/cms-solidwaste/page.aspx?id=257.

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/.

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

The MCC Sustainability Committee