How do I become involved?
– Students
– Faculty
– Staff

How do I recycle on campus?
– What does “plastics 1-7” mean?
– What is mixed paper?
– What is corrugated cardboard?
– What doesn’t UCF recycle?
– What is the procedure for recycling?
– Where are all the recycle bins?
– There was a recycling bin there yesterday; where is it today?
– If I can’t find a recycling bin, where do I go to recycle?
– I live off campus in an apartment without a recycling program. How can I recycle?
– Can I recycle my used cell phone?
– Have additional questions about recycling?

How do I save energy?
– When you leave the room...
– Turn it OFF!
– It’s an everyday lifestyle.

Student's questions
– My class room is freezing! What do I do?
– Who can I contact to pick up a full recycling bin?
– I notice that we are watering the sidewalks now.

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How do I become involved?
Students
Join the Student Sustainability Alliance!
If you’d like to get more involved in sustainable initiatives on campus, consider joining the Student Sustainability Alliance (SSA)! The SSA is a diverse group of students who have come together in the hope of incorporating social justice, economic development, and environmental protection in student activities on campus. Our goal is to unite the student body as a whole in the effort to create a more sustainable college community.
The Student Sustainability Alliance serves multiple rolls on campus: Participating in sustainability projects, communicating to our operational units about student concerns, updating this website, and creating our annual "Sustainable UCF" publication.
There are different levels of involvement with different perks for each level. If you’d like to know more information, or to be notified of activities and meetings that the SSA is involved in, send an email to sustainableucf@mail.ucf.edu with SSA in the subject line.

Faculty
Get involved with the programs happening on campus. For a list of programs, please email sustainableucf@mail.ucf.edu.

Staff
Get involved with the programs happening on campus. For a list of programs, please email sustainableucf@mail.ucf.edu.

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How do I recycle on campus?
UCF recycles! The Physical Plant recycles plastics 1-7, all paper products from mixed paper to corrugated cardboard, and aluminum cans.

What does “plastics 1-7” mean?
On every recyclable plastic material, there exists the three arrowed recycle symbol with a number in the middle. This number corresponds to the type of plastic. Plastic water bottles are often type 1 and reusable containers are often type 5. Orange County only accepts types 1 and 2 to recycle but the UCF Physical Plant accepts plastics types 1-7. Though both plastic grocery bags and Styrofoam are recyclable, the UCF Physical Plant is unable to recycle these types of plastics.

What is mixed paper?

 
Mixed paper includes:
Mixed paper does not include:

 
• colored paper
• magazines
• shredded paper
• white paper
• chipboard
• books
• phone books
• newspapers
• blueprints
• file folders
• junk mail (including envelopes)
• Post-it notes
• pasteboard

• napkins
• tissues
• food
• non-recyclable trash
• paper cups
• paper or plastic plates
• candy wrappers

If the paper is dry, it can be recycled. Staples and paper clips do not need to be removed.

What is corrugated cardboard?
Corrugated cardboard is the heavy type of cardboard used in shipping boxes.

What doesn’t UCF recycle?
The UCF Physical Plant does not currently have facilities to recycle glass, Styrofoam or tin.

What is the procedure for recycling?
Place the recyclables in their appropriate bins on campus. These can be the large blue toters, recycling centers or the wire framed Clear Stream recycling container found inside buildings. Corrugated cardboard should be folded flat and left by a dumpster. Bags of plastic containers or aluminum cans should also be left by a dumpster.
When recycling plastic bottles, please remove the cap and place both the cap and bottle in the recycling bin. Removing the cap allows for both evaporation of the liquid and easy compaction

Where are all the recycle bins?
Because of the lack of bins, Physical Plant is sometimes unable to return them on campus quickly. Always look for them by loading docks of each academic building.

There was a recycling bin there yesterday; where is it today?
Because of the bin shortage, there are not enough recycling receptacles to cover the entire campus. They are moved once they are full and may not be moved back to the same particular spot. Recycling bins can often be found by loading docks of each academic building.

If I can’t find a recycling bin, where do I go to recycle?
Bagged materials may be left by any dumpster or compactor; the recycling team will pick them up there. Recycling can also be dropped off in front of the Facilities and Safety building #16.

I live off campus in an apartment without a recycling program. How can I recycle?
You can drop them off at physical plant in the Facilities and Safety building #16 which is just past the UCF Police Department going out on Libra Drive. Please do this between 8am and 3:00pm, leave the materials outside the front door of the building, go inside to the Work Control Center and ask the person on duty at the front window to let staff know there is recycling out front to be picked up.

Can I recycle my used cell phone?
If you or your department has used cell phones, please consider donating them to the UCF Victim Services program. UCF Victim Services accepts used cell phones as part of their fund raising initiative to assist victims of crime, violence or abuse. The phones we received are sent off to the 911 Cell Phone Bank to be repaired. After the repairs have been made, the phones are distributed back to various social service and victim service agencies. We utilize these phones for clients we work with that may not have a cell phone and are in an unsafe situation where they may need quick access to a phone. The phones are only able to dial 911. By donating your phone to victim services, you are reducing the amount of cell phones deposited in the landfill while supporting victims in unsafe situations.
Drop off locations:
Police Department Community Relations Office — John T. Washington Center
Police Department — Libre Drive
Victim Services — University Tower Building, 12201 Research Parkway, Ste. 450, Orlando
Victim Services Outreach Office — Health Center, room 106, right by the pharmacy.
Women's Studies Office — Colbourn Hall Room 411
If you have several phones, please schedule a pick up with Michelle Quinones at 407-823-6332.

Additional questions
For any additional questions about recycling, please contact Brian Wormwood at wormwood@mail.ucf.edu.

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How do I save energy?

When you leave the room...
• Turn off all lights! Make sure all bathroom lights and additional room lighting are left OFF when not in use.
• Turn up your thermostat 5 degrees. When you get back into your room, turn it back down to your desired temperature.
• In warmer months, close the blinds when you leave the room to keep it cooler.
• Place your computer into sleep mode. Some screen savers actually use more energy than a normally running computer.

Turn it OFF!
• Keep all appliances OFF when not in use. This includes printers, stereos, etc.
• Turn OFF and UNPLUG everything in your room when gone for the weekend/holidays.
• Give your computer a break! Turn it OFF at night or when gone for the day!
• Turn OFF your computer monitor when not in use.
• Plug home electronics, such as TVs and DVD players, into power strips and turn the power strips OFF when the equipment is not in use (TVs and DVDs in standby mode still use several watts of power).
• Unplug items when not in use—even when a cell phone charger is plugged into the wall and not charging your cell phone, it still uses energy!

It’s an everyday lifestyle
• Use compact florescent bulbs for any additional lamps you bring into your room; they last 7 times longer than an incandescent bulb and use ¼ of the energy!
• Open the blinds and use natural sunlight to light your room.
• Wash only full loads of dishes and clothes.
• Air dry dishes instead of using your dishwasher's drying cycle.
• Air dry clothes if you are permitted to use clotheslines.
• When using your computer, keep windows closed; a clearer desktop uses less energy than a computer that has multiple windows open.
• If you live in a dorm, cut down on the number of refrigerators on campus! Share with a friend! If you do have a refrigerator, be sure to keep it on a low setting and check the seal to make sure it shuts properly.
• Take short showers instead of baths.
• Set your thermostat comfortably low in the winter and comfortably high in the summer. Install a programmable thermostat that is compatible with your heating and cooling system.
• Lower the thermostat on your hot water heater to 120° F.
• Drive sensibly. Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration and braking) wastes gasoline.

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Student's questions
My class room is freezing! What do I do?
If the classroom that you are located in seems too cold, please contact the Work Control Center at (407) 823-5223. If the temperature is out of the range of acceptable values, then the appropriate person will adjust the thermostat.

Who can I contact to pick up a full recycling bin?
If there is a recycling toter or bin that is full, please call the Work Control Center at (407) 823-5223.

I notice that we are watering the sidewalks now...
If there is a sprinkler head that is spraying water on the sidewalk and not the plants, please call the Work Control Center at (407) 823-5223.

If you have any other concerns regarding energy efficiency, please email us at sustainableucf@mail.ucf.edu.