WASTE TIPS

Download the UNH Recycles brochure to see what you can and cannot recycle (PDF)

Got items that you don't want but are still usable? Use USNH Surplus to sell or donate items!

What do I do with my...

Everyday recycleables like paper, containers made from plastic or metal, cardboard, etc.?

For more information about recycling everyday items like paper and comingled containers, contact UNH Facilities at (603) 862-2265.

The following can be recycled in designated bins and totters all across campus. Look for the signs and make sure you put items in their proper bins or totters!

Paper: Newspaper, Magazines, Phonebooks, Old Mail, Greeting Cards, Flyers, Brochures, Catalogues, Folders, Old Financial Statements, Paper Bags, Soft Cover Books Paperboard: (May be mixed with Paper) Cereal, Rice, Cracker, Pasta, Shoe Boxes Paper Towel Rolls, Writing Pad Backs Food and Pizza Boxes (discard liners.) Does it tear? Is it clean? Then recycle it... Cannot be recycled: Waxed Paper, Soiled Paper, Used Tissues, Plastic, Wood or Metal, Dirt or Other Trash, Plastic Bags

Containers:

Plastic: 1 PET - #1 Plastics, 2 HDPE- #2 Plastics ▪ Soft Drinks and Liquor Bottles ▪ Milk, Water, and Juice Containers ▪ Laundry, Bleach, and Cleaning Containers. Cannot be recycled: Plastic Grocery Bags, Sandwich Bags ▪ 5 Gallon Pails Lids and Caps ▪ Plastic Silverware ▪ Needles ▪ Brittle Dairy Food Containers ▪ No Container that Previously Held a Hazardous Material. NOTE: #3-7 plastics are not currently recycled by UNH's recycling contractor, Waste Management, as these plastics either do not have a market or are cost prohibitive to recycle.
Glass: Clear, Brown, Green and Blue Glass ▪ Food and Beverage Containers ▪ Ceramic Cups and Plates ▪ Drinking Glasses. Cannot be recycled: Heat Resistant Ovenware ▪ Light Bulbs ▪ Mirror and Windowpane Glass.
Metals: Aluminum Cans (Soft Drink, Juice and other Beverage Cans) ▪ Steel (Tin, Soup Cans, and Metal Jar Lids) ▪ Aluminum Pie Tins and Foil ▪ Aerosol Cans (EMPTY) (Non-Paint or pesticide). Cannot be recycled: Paint Cans, Gas Cans, or any container that had previously contained a hazardous or toxic material.

Cardboard: Any Clean Broken-Down “Waffled” Cardboard Box. Cannot be recyled: Waxed cardboard or styrofoam.

Transparencies?

3M is the only company to datethat recycles transparencie. Mail your transparencies to them at:

3M Recycle Program c/o Gemark

99 Stevens Lane

Exeter, PA 18643

You can print this PDF label to help with your mailing.

Lightbulbs?

Place your burnt out bulbs in a box, tape the top, and label “Universal Waste." Call the Office of Environmental Health and Safety for pickup: 862-4041.

If you have a broken CFL bulb, open a window, leave the room,and call UNH Facilities at 862-1437. Click here and here for more information.

Batteries?

Learn all about batteries!

These can go into the normal trash:

Alkaline batteries: Since passage of the Mercury-Containing and Rechargeable Battery Management Act of 1996, use of mercury in batteries was phased out in the U.S. Alkaline batteries batteries sold after May 13, 1996 have no mercury added and may be placed in the regular trash. These may be identified by seeing a green stripe, green tree, "Hg free" label, or an expiration date later than 1998. Older batteries may contain mercury; if you are a UNH employee using such batteries at work, contact the Office of Environmental Health and Safety to have them disposed of properly. At home, you should take them to a collection location, recycling facility or save them for a municipal household hazardous waste collection day.
Zinc carbon and zinc chloride batteries are non-hazardous and can be placed in the trash.

These must be disposed of properly:

Lithium batteries: Lithium batteries are considered a hazardous waste and are potentially reactive if not completely discharged. If you are a UNH employee using such batteries at work, contact the Office of Environmental Health and Safety to have them disposed of properly. At home, you should take them to a collection location, recycling facility or save them for a municipal household hazardous waste collection.
Button cell batteries: Button cell batteries may contain mercury or other hazardous substances, such as silver. If you are a UNH employee using such batteries at work, contact the Office of Environmental Health and Safety to have them disposed of properly. At home, you should take them to a collection location, recycling facility or save them for a municipal household hazardous waste collection.

Electronics or appliances like computers and TV's?

FOR UNH EMPLOYEES: If you are certain you cannot donate or sell items that you do not need but are in good working condition through USNH Surplus, complete the Request to Scrap Form to dispose of scrap electronics like CPUs, monitors, televisions, keyboards, mice, photocopiers, printers, various types of laboratory analytical devices, or any other electronic device that contains a circuit board. After the USNH Purchasing Office approves the item(s) for disposal, the Office of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) will then contact the requester to arrange for pick up of the scrapped items.

NOTE: Follow the UNH Guidelines for the Purchase and Disposal of Personal Computers to ensure that you first erase all information before disposing of computers or other electronics that might have stored personal or private information.

The UNH Office of Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) manages the disposal of scrap electronics for the University. Scrap electronics includes CPUs, monitors, televisions, keyboards, mice, photocopiers, printers, various types of laboratory analytical devices, or any other electronic device that contains a circuit board. With the exception of computer monitors and televisions (cathode ray tubes), which are regulated under the Universal Waste Rules, these items are not specifically required to be managed as regulated waste. However, due to the lead content of printed circuitry, and the potential for other hazardous materials in electronic devices, scrap electronics must not be disposed in the municipal waste stream.

Toner and ink cartridges?

There are many ways to reuse or recycle cartridges!

Check with UNH MUB Copy, which offers a cartridge refilling service for both inkjet and laser printers - saving you up to 50% on the cost of a new cartridge and keeping the old cartridges out of the trash. Visit the MUB Copy Center located on level 2 east of the UNH Memorial Union Building (MUB) or call 862-0530 to learn more.
Recycle used and empty toner and ink jet cartridges through the UNH Recycling Center, which takes them to Reliable Technologies to be recycled. Either send them to the UNH Recycling Center through campus mail (Figment Hall) or call 862-3100 to arrange a pickup.
Check with the UNH Computer Store, with the cartridge manufacturer itself (like HP, for example), or with an office supply store like Staples or OfficeMax, many of which have recycling programs and even in-store drop-off locations for used cartridges.

Cell phones?

As there are many programs that already exist to help you donate or recycle your old cell phone, UNH does not have its own program. Visit any of the following websites to find options:

CD's and DVD's?

As there are many programs that already exist to help you reuse or recycle old CD's and DVD's, UNH does not have its own program. Visit any of the following websites to find options:

Styrofoam?

Check Earth911.com to find where you can find polystyrene recycling in your area.
If a drop-off site doesn’t exist in your area, you can also use a mail-back program such as the Alliance of Foam Packaging Recyclers.

Hazardous, radiological, or chemical wastes like thermometers, photographic fluids, or pesticides?

Call the Office of Environmental Health and Safety (862-4041) if you have the following items:

Biohazardous, chemical, and universal wastes. These include pesticides, photographic fluids, thermostats, and automobile fluids/batteries. Disposal requests for can be made by filling out the Waste Pick-Up Request Form. When contacting OEHS, provide information on the type and amount of waste, location of waste, department and contact name/phone number of waste generator.
Radiological waste. After contacting the Office of Environmental Health and Safety, they will set an appointment with the radioactive waste generator to have the waste removed from the laboratory. Please provide the following information at the time of pickup: type of waste (radionuclide and state - solid or liquid), amount of waste, activity of waste, location of waste, and contact name/phone number of radioactive waste generator.

More recycling programs to come in the future...

Styrofoam packing peanuts, Alkaline Batteries, TYVEK Mailers, CDs, Diskettes, Cell Phones, Pages, PDAs, Scrap Metal, Wood, Bicycles, Clothing, Dorm/Office Furniture.