by Stephanie Fox
The Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) celebrated Earth Day with the first trash audit since changing its recycling system.
After examining almost 115 pounds of waste and recycling bags, the SERC operations team in charge of today’s audit found only about 3% of items were thrown in the wrong bin. That’s a huge improvement from the first audit that took place in the fall.
SERC prides itself on being one of the most environmentally friendly research centers in the country. Its Mathias Laboratory was awarded a “Platinum” Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, the highest rank LEED offers for green buildings. It also received the President’s GreenGov Building the Future Award in 2015, awarded to buildings with sustainable operations and green designs.
That’s why members of the staff were shocked to find that a 2018 waste audit revealed them to be terrible at recycling. Click to continue »