Shaver’s Creek to Host ‘Zero Waste’ Workshop on Wednesday

To aid those making the effort to reduce their carbon footprint, Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center and Penn State’s Office of Physical Plant are jointly holding the workshop, ‘Naturally Green: The Journey to Zero Waste,’ on Wednesday. 

The workshop will be held from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Wednesday. It costs is $15 per person and includes a zero-waste lunch from Penn State’s Campus Catering, as well as transportation from the campus and State College.

The workshop is beneficial for anyone who ‘wants to learn how to achieve zero waste in their home, their school or their workplace,’ said Brian Sedgwick, building services coordinator at Shaver’s Creek. Participants will learn the steps they can take to expand composting and recycling programs and will hear stories of Penn State departments that have achieved zero waste.

In working with the OPP Waste Management Team, Shaver’s Creek bid farewell to its trash cans and dumpster more than a year ago. The center now recycles and composts 96 percent of its waste and generates just one garbage bag per month, Sedgwick said. For that to happen, the center changed everything from the kind of lumber bought to the coffee containers used, he said.

Reducing waste is beneficial to the environment and saves money on landfill fees that can go back into Penn State’s operations instead, said Al Matyasovsky, supervisor of the OPP’s Central Support Services.

Anyone can register online.