10/20/2017 Why Are Scientists So Bad at Recycling?

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Observations

WhyAreScientistsSoBadatRecycling?
Laboratories have unique obstacles toward achieving zero waste, but incentives could help

ByKimberlyMcCoyonOctober19,2017

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10/20/2017 Why Are Scientists So Bad at Recycling? - Scientic American Blog Network

Credit:MikeLaptevGettyImages

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The amount of waste that I have seen generated in a scientific laboratory would make
Al Gore cry.

On a daily basis, scientists use and then dispose of plastic tubes, gloves and pipette
tips, all destined for the landfill. A pilot study conducted by students at McGill
University estimated that labs on their campus generate 100 tons of plastic waste and
275 tons of glass every yearand there are more than 300 research universities in the
United States alone.

So why, in an academic hub of environmentally conscientious, problem-solving

people, dont laboratories have waste production down to the absolute minimum?

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10/20/2017 Why Are Scientists So Bad at Recycling? - Scientic American Blog Network

And what can we do about it? Single-use items are popular among researchers
because they have already been sterilized and they dont need to be cleaned after use.
Unfortunately, they often cant just be tossed into the recycling bin, because in many
labs, everything used in an experiment ends up covered in things that are toxic or
dangerous. Because the majority of molecular biology labs work with E.colithe
bacterium that causes food poisoningeverything that touches the bug must be
decontaminated. It all goes into an autoclave, a machine that looks like an oven and
heat-kills germs at temperatures hot enough to cook a brisket. Then its chucked.

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Most of the tubes laboratories throw away should be recyclable, but other items are
not. It would be time-consuming to go into each waste bag and separate out
recyclable items. Many scientists already work well over the average American 40
hours per week so adding sift trash to the daily task list is unlikely.

But there are plenty of things scientists can do to minimize waste. Researchers could
use glass vials instead of plastic, which are reusable, since they survive the autoclave
heating. Labs could purchase zero waste boxes, which ship certain items to a
specialized recycling facility. In 2011, the company Kimberly-Clark started a glove-
recycling program that has repurposed 300 tons of single-use gloves into items like
patio furniture.

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10/20/2017 Why Are Scientists So Bad at Recycling? - Scientic American Blog Network

The problem is that participation in these types of initiatives is voluntary and so

recycling rates vary between institutions. While there are examples of successful lab
recycling programs at places like Harvard and the University of North Carolina,
scientists on the whole could be doing more to achieve zero waste. But scientists are
people too. Changing an ingrained behavior, even a little bit, takes time.

The odds of recycling are influenced by convenience. For example, more people will
recycle if the bin is in the lab rather than down the hall and up two floors. But getting
the bins in place relies on someone taking the initiative. To create lasting change that
does not hinge on one recycling-passionate person, there must be a change in policy.

Incentivizerecycling

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Companies have an obvious incentive to appeal to consumers: a desire to stay in

business. Kimberly-Clark may be an environmentally conscientious company, but its
executives likely created the glove-recycling program because they thought their
customers would use it. Incentives work on a government level as well: about a fifth of
U.S. states have bottle bills that refund people either five or 10 cents per recyclable

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10/20/2017 Why Are Scientists So Bad at Recycling? - Scientic American Blog Network

beverage container. Not surprisingly, these states have about a 40 percent higher
recycling rate than other states in the U.S.

Perhaps incentives could also work on a laboratory level. If the National Institutes of
Health, one of the largest sources of research funding in the U.S., used waste
minimization as funding criterion, more labs would undoubtedly find ways to recycle.
Universities could also offer funds to labs that participate in recycling programs, or to
labs that have shown waste reduction. Emory University in Atlanta offers small grants
to labs for sustainability-related projects through its Green Labs initiative. However,
since the funding cant be used for nonsustainability-related research (which is the
labs main focus), funding agencies could award research grants to labs that have
made sustainability a priority, much like the National Science Foundation uses
community service and commitment to diversity as award criteria.

Penalizerecyclablesfoundinthewastestream

Some states and cities ban certain items from the landfill, like food and electronics.
Enforcing these restrictions, however, costs money since people need to be hired to
audit waste and give out citations.

One solution that some municipalities like New York City have adopted is refusing to
remove trash until the recyclables have been removed. In this scenario, there is a
large incentive for the resident, or in this case, laboratory. If you dont want to
recycle, no problem, get rid of your own trash. I can imagine behavior would change
pretty quickly (although illegal dumping may become a completely different issue).
To curb the burden placed on labs (or, more accurately, the lowest member on the lab
totem pole), the university could establish recycling committees who educate and
equip labs with convenient recycling set-ups.

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Scientists may have a unique set of barriers toward achieving zero waste in the
laboratory, but they are driven by the same motivations as everyone else: saving time
and money.

While there are plenty of examples of stellar recycling programs implemented by

various laboratories, programs, or universities, we are far from achieving zero waste.
By designing recycling policies we ensure that research laboratories contribute to
finding the next big discovery, not to filling up our landfills.

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KimberlyMcCoy

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