Since 2010, Grand Valley State University has produced more than 750,000 pounds of recycled materials and more than 500,000 pounds of compost. With the annual RecycleMania competition kicking off on Feb. 7, GVSU community members hope to generate even higher numbers than ever before.

RecycleMania is an annual national competition between universities to promote recycling and improve efforts to eliminate waste. The competition takes place Feb. 7 through April 2, with the final winner announced on April 15.

The goal of the competition is to motivate campus communities to increase recycling efforts and well as build attention and support for such programs on each campus, like GVSU’s facilities services and office of sustainability. The competition is also a way for universities to measure their yearly recycling activity and improve every year.

Each week, universities will report the amount of trash and recycling collected and will be ranked in various categories. The grand champion category measures a university’s recycling rate as a percentage of its overall waste accumulation, while the gorilla prize measures the highest gross amount of recycled materials.

Other categories include the Stephen K. Gaski per capita classic, waste minimization, targeted materials and most improved, a new category this year.

In 2015, GVSU ranked 24 of 233 schools in the grand champion category and 25 of 334 in the gorilla prize.

Janet Aubil, operations supervisor of GVSU Facilities Services, said GVSU’s goal is to always produce more recycled materials and compost than waste.

GVSU Facilities Services has teamed up with the campus dining services to promote recycling and composting by utilizing the labeled bins in each campus dining location.

“We really want students to be careful when throwing their food away,” Aubil said. “The food is compostable, but most of the utensils and wrappers can be composted or recycled as well.”

With many students living on campus, the housing department is also playing a vital role in promoting the tournament and recycling in general.

Jim Van Nada, living center director for the South Apartments, said many living centers on campus have a designated recycling room inside, which makes it convenient for students to recycle.

“Overall, I’m impressed with Grand Valley’s efforts to encourage recycling,” Van Nada said. “We’re continually encouraging residents to use the recycling bins in their units for anything that can contribute.”

The winner of each RecycleMania category will receive national recognition with a press release from the organization and the right to host that category’s trophy for the coming year. Winning schools also receive an award made out of recycled materials.

Students are always encouraged to make a conscious effort to recycle on campus, but especially during the tournament. GVSU accepts paper, plastics, cardboard, glass, metal, batteries and computers for recycling.

There are many recycling bins located throughout the university, in living centers, classrooms, student centers and office buildings.

“We’re really looking for everyone’s help,” Aubil said. “We want everyone to be aware of what can be recycled and composted so that we can reduce unnecessary waste.”

For more information on RecycleMania and how to reduce waste on campus, visit www.gvsu.edu/sustainability.