Thousands of fans will flock to Rice-Eccles Stadium this season to cheer on the Utes, and with their presence will come thousands of pounds of trash.
Recycle Rice-Eccles, a program through the Sustainability Office, recruits student volunteers to clean up and recycle waste left in the stadium after each football game. The materials collected by the volunteers are recycled by the U’s Facilities Management.
It can be a dirty job. Last year, 25,000 pounds of recycling were collected from home football games at Rice-Eccles Stadium. This year the program is gearing up with new expansions to have an impact at other events on campus too. The green initiative is one component of many in a campus-wide effort to promote sustainability.
Kelsey Paulding, the director of sustainability with ASUU, is involved in the Recycle Rice-Eccles program and other sustainability-focused programs on campus. She said the program at the stadium was started in a collaboration between students who wanted recycling to have more of a role at the football games.
“It’s unique because we pair action with education,” Paulding said. “While we are going around with garbage containers to collect recyclables, we share information with people in the stadium about their impact and how they can make a difference.”
Students in lime green shirts, known as the “green police,” encourage and educate guests to recycle aluminum, plastic, glass and cardboard. Other volunteers, known as “green men,” can be found in green mesh uniforms and interact more with fans throughout the game.
Volunteers at the program also get exclusive benefits for their time and effort. They receive a free t-shirt, food, access to the game and an opportunity to go onto the field with Paulding and her directors during the second quarter.
In other efforts toward sustainability, the U joined the Green Sports Alliance as the first organization to do so in Utah, but as the last to join from the Pac-12. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to improving sustainability of athletic events around the nation.
Paulding said other similar initiatives are also coming this year.
The Recycle Huntsman program was created last year and will be offering the same services as Recycle Rice-Eccles at gymnastics and basketball games throughout the year.
For students interested in volunteering with Recycle Rice-Eccles or Recycle Huntsman, Paulding encourages them to visit the ASUU website for more information.
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