Students, faculty, staff, and campus visitors all play a part in helping UF reach our 90% waste reduction goal.

Not all communities recycle the same way, so it’s important to review the guidelines and expectations when stepping onto campus for the first time.

Recycling at UF

All dining halls, residence halls, and academic buildings have recycling bins inside and outside.

At UF, we use dual stream recycling, so it’s essential that you separate your recyclable items accordingly. Paper and cardboard items will go in a bin separate from glass, metal, and plastic. You should NOT recycle items that are not approved for these bins, even if the item has a recycling arrow on it.

Helpful Reminders To Optimize Recycling At UF

Recycling isn’t always straightforward! Here are a few handy tips to keep in mind on campus:

• Plastic bags and styrofoam are not recyclable.
• Remove bottle caps and lids before recycling plastic and glass bottles. Bottle caps and lids go in the landfill bin.
• Empty your recyclable containers (food and liquid) before recycling. If possible, rinse them out too!
• Cardboard and paper products cannot be recycled when contaminated by food. No greasy pizza boxes, paper plates, paper cups, etc.

For other on-campus questions, refer to the Recycling FAQ.

Advice to Students Living On Campus

• The quickest thing you can do to improve recycling is reduce your overall plastic use and general consumption habits.
• Take your reusable water bottle with you everywhere and fill up at water stations all across campus.
• Get involved with sustainable and environmental organizations on campus. These groups often host swaps, collection events, etc.
• Familiarize yourself with off-campus resources for recycling and reuse for special items, such as the Leveda Brown Environmental Park, Repurpose Project, and other community entities that facilitate waste management and/or a circular economy.

 

Specialty recycling

Some materials do not fit in the typical waste or recycling bins, but they can still be serviced through campus waste management options. We encourage members of the campus community to look up the specific item(s) on the guide to determine if there are any options to recycle on campus.

Recycling Guide

UF Surplus

For university departments, UF Surplus offers an easy way for surplus property to be transferred and reused by other departments within the university. The UF Surplus pickup teams’ primary objective is to collect items that are in good condition, with a focus on working items for the purpose of reusability and sustainability.

All UF-purchased electronics must be disposed of through UF Surplus.

Event Recycling

Recycling support may be available for on-campus events. To permit your campus event, please submit your request through Business Affairs GatorConnect.