Volunteers will be collecting our food waste in the third floor caf next week

Have you ever expected anyone to chase you down for your banana peels, used napkins, and half-eaten sandwiches? No? Well… expect the unexpected. From April 11th to April 15th, Hunter students will be conducting a food waste assessment in the third floor cafeteria as a part of the Food Waste Erased initiative. 

Partnering with Energy Vision, a national environmental organization specializing in sustainable waste management and renewable energy, Hunter interns and volunteers are aiming to measure the sheer volume of food waste produced at Hunter College. Throughout the assessment, volunteers will be guiding students in the cafeteria to separate their food waste from their recyclables and trash. They will simultaneously be distributing educational materials regarding organic waste. At the end of each day, they’ll weigh the organics to assess the total poundage for the week, which will be used to calculate monthly and annual food waste generation at Hunter. The ultimate goal is to use and analyze this data in order to develop an effective food waste separation and collection plan that will bring the school closer to zero waste.

Food Waste Erased Team

Hunter College is undertaking this project because food waste doesn’t have to be wasted at all. Instead of sending it to landfills, resulting in air, water and land pollution, organic waste can be used as a valuable resource. By avoiding sending it to landfills, the school could also avoid paying hefty landfill fees (as much or more than $100 per ton in NYC). Moreover, when food waste decomposes in landfills it produces methane, which is an extremely potent greenhouse gas, 28-36 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Landfills are the third largest source of human-induced methane emissions in the US.

The NYC Department of Sanitation (DSNY) recognizes food waste’s potential and has created a curbside organics collection program, which is spreading throughout the city. After collecting these organics, DSNY sends this material to be composted. Composting converts food waste, that would normally be sent to landfills, into rich soils used for gardens and agriculture in place of artificial fertilizers.

Organic waste can also be used to produce energy and fuel through the process of anaerobic digestion. As organic material decomposes in anaerobic digesters, it produces biogas, a mixture of methane and carbon dioxide, which be used to create heat or power. If refined, this biogas (then known as renewable natural gas) can also replace diesel fuel in trucks or buses.

Both alternative food waste practices are sustainable — they divert this material away from methane-producing landfills and convert it into green and useful products.

If you’re interested in promoting sustainability at Hunter, don’t just stand there! Sign up here to volunteer with Food  Waste Erased and help us conduct our food waste assessment.

You can sign up here.