There are several multi-sort recycling, composting and waste containers in the Mackintosh-Corry Hall dining area.

Queen’s Hospitality Services has added new multi-sort recycling, composting and waste containers to the Mackintosh-Corry Hall dining area and the Lazy Scholar cafe in Victoria Hall as part of its ongoing waste diversion strategy.

“Gone are the days when we can just toss everything into the garbage. We need to be thoughtful about our waste and where it goes,” says Joli Manson, General Manager, Hospitality Services. “These multi-sort containers have several different slots – for paper, plastic, organics and waste – and they require people stop and think about where to place their waste.”

Signs are posted on the multi-sort containers, indicating what goes in each slot. If users are unsure about where to place their waste, they should put it in the garbage; placing it in the wrong slot will complicate the recycling and compost streaming process.

Queen’s already diverts 95 per cent of organic waste in its dining halls. Organics bins and two industrial-size composters transform the waste into a soil supplement used on campus. The new multi-sort containers will increase the impact of the organics program by making the process front and centre, instead of behind the scenes, effectively drawing community members in as active participants in the waste diversion strategy.

Hospitality Services is working to bring the multi-sort containers to other dining areas across campus, including the Queen’s Centre and the John Deutsch University Centre. Currently, all food packaging at Queen’s is biodegradable or compostable. Hospitality Services is working with its suppliers and aims to have all packaging compostable in the near future.

The Sustainability Office will be tracking the multi-sort containers’ waste through its ongoing waste audits.

More information on waste diversion at Queen’s can be found at the Sustainability Office and Hospitality Services websites.