Plastic Bag Recycling Program
On-Campus Plastic Bag Recycling Bins are located in these areas:
- Edith Garland Dupre Library Lobby
- Moody Hall Lobby
- Wharton Hall (bin located between rooms 219-220)
- Rougeou Hall Lobby
- Campus Cupboard + Career Closet (210 E. St. Mary Blvd.)
- All Residental Hall Lobbys
- Office of Sustainability (1606 Johnston St) - Drive up drop off
Material placed in bins must be clean, empty, and dry.
What is Accepted:
We collect plastic bags from 11 drop off locations around main campus and at the Cajun Field concessions for football games. We have collected over 1000 pounds of plastic bags since 2018. The plastic bags and film we collect are sent off to Trex to be turned into plastic benches. It takes 500lbs to create 1 plastic bench and we are working toward getting our 3rd bench!
Why can't plastic bags be recycled with mixed recycling?
Plastic bags must be recycled separatley from the mixed recycling bins on campus because the plastic bags jam the sorting machine at the Materials Recovery Facility (MRF). Mixed recycling relies on a series of conveyor belts that sort the different materials (plastic, paper, cardboard, aluminum) into differnet piles for further processing. The plastic bags stretch and jam the conveyer belts, requiring perosnnel to halt production and remove the material.
Green Tip: You can avoid plastic grocery bags altogether and receive discounts at some shopping locations when you use reusable grocery bags.
The Plastic Bag Recycling Program is run by Casey Johnson, Office of Sustainabilty Graduate Student