Cal State L.A. is committed to a campus wide consolidated waste management program which includes providing trash/waste removal and recycling efforts. Within buildings, Facilities Services provides departments and office areas with blue recycling containers that the custodians do not intermingle with waste. Bags containing waste are placed inside waste bins located near the loading docks of buildings, while bags containing recyclables (mostly consisting of paper goods) are placed on the ground beside the waste bins. Trash and recycling are easily distinguishable through the use of clear bags.
After, the campus recycling unit comprised of two laborers, collects the bags of recycling every morning from every loading dock. They then discard the recycling in one of the designated recycling containers. Additionally, the laborers monitor and collect the recyclables from the multi-stream recycling centers located throughout the campus approximately two times per week. The recyclables are then transported to the Corporate Yard and placed in their respective bins. This practice is also used when collecting e-waste, ink/toner cartridges, tires, construction debris, wood and metal.
To further promote the importance of recycling and sustainability, the campus contracts with Southland Disposal to process consolidated waste which is transferred to a materials reclamation facility. The mixed solid waste stream is then separated into various recyclable materials through a combination of manual and mechanical sorting. The sorted recyclable materials undergo further processing required to meet a zero percent waste goal. The final step of the process includes taking all excess, non-recyclable material to a waste-to-energy plant. This process eliminates all waste produced by the campus from entering landfills.