Waste Management
Food Waste
Hamilton College collects food waste from campus dining halls, including kitchen scraps and uneaten food from student plates. Kitchen staff place food scraps in designated bins, while students scrape leftover food into labeled food waste bins. Hamilton partners with the Oneida-Herkimer Solid Waste Authority (OHSWA) to recycle this food waste. CNY Green Bucket transports the collected material to OHSWA’s anaerobic digestion facility, where it is processed through the Food2Energy program. Supported by the EPS&S Office, this partnership turns campus food waste into renewable energy.
Hamilton Harvest is a student-run food recovery program that collects surplus food from the main entrée stations in the College’s two dining halls. Student volunteers package the recovered food, which is donated weekly to six local soup kitchens. Each semester, 100–250 students participate, either individually or through their sports teams or Greek life organizations. Hamilton is also a member of the Food Recovery Network. In 2025, Hamilton Harvest replaced single-use aluminum pans with reusable stainless steel containers to further reduce waste.
Hungry Hamilton helps reduce food waste from catered campus events. Developed by Hamilton Sustainability Coordinators, the initiative allows students to claim leftover food after events rather than letting it go to waste. Students who join the Hungry Hamilton GroupMe receive notifications when food is available. Event organizers share the location and pickup time, and students can stop by to take available leftovers.
Green-to-Go allows students to borrow reusable food containers and mugs from campus dining halls at no cost. Students can use the containers to take meals back to their residence halls or eat elsewhere on campus, reducing the need for single-use takeout containers and cups. Download the Fill It Forward app to participate.
Solid Waste
Move-in and move-out periods generate a significant amount of solid waste during the academic year. Cram & Scram gives students an opportunity to donate unwanted items when they move out. Donated items are provided to community organizations or sold at discounted prices during campus resale events each fall, keeping usable items out of the waste stream.
Hamilton’s “All in the Hall” initiative asks employees to bring personal office waste and recycling to centralized bins. By reducing the need for individual office trash cans and plastic liners, the program helps decrease waste and allows custodial staff to spend more time on high-priority work that supports the health, safety and cleanliness of the campus community.
Hamilton recycles as many materials as possible through the Oneida-Herkimer Solid Waste Authority’s single-stream recycling program. Because the facility accepts mixed recyclables, community members can place recyclable materials together in campus recycling bins rather than sorting them by material type.
Learn practical tips for reducing waste and making more sustainable choices as a Hamilton student. Explore sustainable practices for students.
Special Recycling
Hamilton College collects eligible plastic film for recycling. Collection bins are available at the following campus locations:
- KTSA, by classroom 219
- Science Center, main entrance
- Spencer House, garden level
- Bristol Mail Center
Hamilton sends collected plastic film to TerraCycle, helping prevent these materials from being landfilled or incinerated. The plastic film is processed into raw materials used to manufacture durable products such as plastic lumber, shipping pallets and outdoor furniture. Learn more about TerraCycle’s recycling process.
Hamilton College collects rechargeable batteries for recycling. Single-use alkaline batteries are not accepted.
The campus collection location is:
- Howard Diner (Beinecke Student Activities Village)
Fluorescent and LED lightbulbs can be given to custodial staff for proper recycling and disposal.
Facilities Management organizes the collection and recycling of scrap metal on campus. Recycling scrap metal helps prevent these materials from being sent to the landfill.
Hamilton participates in textile recycling at the conclusion of the spring semester through Cram & Scram. The program accepts damaged or stained textile items, which are donated to The Utica Center for Development.
Contact
Contact Name
Brian Hansen
Director of Environmental Protection, Safety and Sustainability
