49er Shops has diverted 30 tons of food waste from landfills to a composting facility throughout the past year in an effort to reduce its carbon footprint.
The idea to compost leftover food came from 49er Shops’ “green team,” who realized that their biggest challenge was dealing with the difficult aspects of being in the food industry, according to 49er Shops Communications Supervisor Marianne Russo.
As a result, 49er Shops conducted a study in the residential dining halls and found that more than 200 pounds of food were wasted during a normal lunch period. This leads to nearly nine tons of solid waste over the course of one semester, according to the 49er shops website.
“By diverting our waste through composting instead of just sending it to a landfill, we effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions as well as our carbon footprint as an organization,” Russo said.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, an estimated 2.67 metric tons of carbon dioxide can be eliminated for every single ton of waste diverted from a landfill to a composting facility. About 2.67 metric tons of carbon dioxide is equivalent to burning roughly 300 gallons of gasoline.
Although 49er Shops decided to compost its leftover food, Russo said, they aren’t the ones who actually compost the food. Instead, she said Associated Students Inc. Recycling Coordinator Lee Johnson put 49er Shops in touch with Athens Services, a company that specializes in providing waste collection and recycling services in Southern California for more than 50 years.
Russo said composting food isn’t the only effort made by Cal State Long Beach to be environmentally friendly.
Johnson said there are also approximately 400 trash containers and 174 pyramid-topped can and bottle recycling containers on the exterior grounds of the campus.
According to Russo, 49er Shops also helped in upgrading many vending machines on campus to become Energy Star efficient, an international standard for energy efficient consumer products.
They also placed hydration stations in the University Student Union Dining Plaza and are currently working with Southern California Edison on a lighting program to replace existing lights with more efficient models, she said.
“The 49er Shops are dedicated to protecting the environment and reducing our reliance on fossil fuels,” Russo said. “Our ultimate goal for the future is to eliminate our waste stream by 75 percent through recycling, waste diversion and waste elimination.”