First results of the campus wide recycling campaign

The Aalto community-wide recycling campaign was launched in October 2024 and the first results of developing the recycling rate during the first three months of the campaign are now available.
Näkymä Ämmäsuolta 14.11.2024
View of the mixed waste field at Ämmässuo Eco-Industrial Centre in November 2024. Mixed waste accumulated at Ämmässuo due to the downtime of the waste to energy plant in Vantaa.

A recycling campaign was launched in the Aalto community in October 2024. In the first three months, the campaign has included mapping the recycling facilities on campus, asking the community for suggestions and ideas for better waste recycling, and visiting the Ämmässuo Eco-Industrial Centre together with building officers and Aalto's environmental agents.

Kierrätysaste
Recycling rate on Otaniemi campus on October, November and December 2024.

First results

The annual recycling rate in Aalto has averaged 64%, and the campaign aims to increase the recycling rate to 70%. There is a slight variation in the results for October-December, but the overall picture and trend will be easier to see in the coming spring.

The total amount of waste generated on campus was 121.6 tonnes in October, 140.1 tonnes in November and 117.1 tonnes in December.

Luento Ämmässuon ekomo-keskuksessa.
Visiting the Ämmässuo Eco-Industrial Centre.

Information on recycling in the Eco-Industrial Centre

During the visit to Ämmässuo, the visitors were informed about the Eco-Industrial Centre's activities and the recycling potential of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area.

"We visited the Ämmässuo Eco-Industrial Centre in Espoo last November. It was eye-opening to see how much materials can be recycled. And how much work is being done and new innovations being sought to make materials more efficiently reused. There are still too many materials in mixed waste that could easily be recycled. We can certainly do even more as an Aalto community," says Tanja Pietikäinen, Property Coordinator at ACRE.

The recycling campaign continues!

The impact of the campaign and the development of the recycling rate will be monitored and reported every three months, i.e. next time in April. Tips for better sorting, information sessions and guidance will also be provided as part of the campaign.

The next "Take it or leave it" recycling event will take place in March in the lobby of Otakaari 1. There will also be concrete changes to the campus recycling points later in the spring/summer.

Do you already have a good idea or tip to improve waste recycling on campus? Leave it below this article (logged in users) or email us at info-acre@aalto.fi. If necessary, tips can be used to make a very quick impact on recycling on campus.

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