Nicholls Green is hosting a recycling awareness day from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. today in the Quad.
Heather Tabor, president of Nicholls Green and general studies senior from Thibodaux, said the event is part of the national America Recycles Day.
“We are going to have information to get the word out about reducing, reusing and recycling,” Tabor said. “We will have information about the benefits of recycling.”
America Recycles Day is a program of Keep America Beautiful, Inc., dedicated to promoting and celebrating recycling in the United States.
Keep America Beautiful, Inc., established in 1953, is the nation’s largest volunteer-based community action and education organization.
Nicholls’ recycling event will be a recycling station for materials like paper, newspaper, plastic bottles, glass bottles, batteries, ink cartridges and old shoes.
Tabor said that although most materials can be recycled, those items are the most common.
Students, faculty, staff and community members who bring recyclable items can receive a shirt, reusable bottle or reusable bag in exchange for the items. The event will also have donuts and pizza for people who attend wearing green, while supplies last.
The Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program, Student Government Association and the Biology Society are also contributing to the cause.
“It is really about awareness and getting the community involved, especially on campus,” Tabor said. “I am very passionate about this because I think it is important for our future. We need a healthier Earth, and there are many ways to work towards that.”
Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality said recycling saves natural resources, energy, clean air, water, landfill space and money. Products made from recycled materials instead of new materials conserve resources and take less energy to make. When items are recycled they do not take up space in garbage or landfills.
According to Keep America Beautiful, Inc., the national recycling rate is currently at 34 percent. Recycling is a multi-billion dollar industry that employs millions of Americans and helps advance our clean energy economy. Recycling 75 percent of the nation’s waste would create nearly 1.5 million jobs by 2030, according to a report by the Tellus Institute with Sound Resource Management.
Most recyclable items will be accepted at today’s event, but contact Nicholls Green with specific questions.