Minimize waste. Maximize recycling and composting.

In an effort to achieve UC Riverside’s goal of zero waste by 2020, Facilities Services (FS) has installed Bigbelly solar power units at the Bell Tower and at the crosswalk between Material Science and Engineering (MSE) and Bourns College of Engineering.

The introduction of the Bigbelly solar units to the main campus will minimize waste collection by providing the campus opportunities to sort their waste into one of the three bins made for recycling, landfill or composting. These smart bins have internal sensors to measure the waste deposited into the unit and are designed to compact the waste once the bin has reached capacity. This allows the unit to hold up to 8 times more waste than the standard bin. To that end, we have removed a total of 15 waste cans from the campus core.

Bigbelly bins bring additional benefits to the campus by:

• Showcasing our campus commitment to sustainability
• Maintaining a cleaner campus by providing a better aesthetic and oversaturation of bins
• Eliminating pilfering
• Minimizing windblown litter access for critters
• Increasing recycling and composting
• Eliminating the need to touch waste bins as each unit has a foot pedal to automatically open the receptacle.

For more information on Bigbelly Solar at UCR, please contact Hassan Ghamlouch at Hassan.ghamlouch@ucr.edu or Tos Ishida at toshio.ishida@ucr.edu.

Visit the Office of Sustainability to learn more about UCR's Zero Waste by 2020 goals.