More than 200 UNC students took part in a recycling drive Thursday in celebration of America Recycles Day.
The Office of Waste Reduction and Recycling, the Sustainability Office and EcoReps hosted a drive where students could donate their unwanted and recyclable items.
Items collected included batteries, cell phones, printer cartridges and plastic bags.
Year-round, the Orange County Solid Waste Management Department runs a variety of recycling programs.
The department is in charge of recycling for all county government buildings and both Chapel Hill- Carrboro City Schools and Orange County Schools.
In the last year, about 56 percent of all waste in the county was diverted from landfills, said Cody Marshall, recycling programs manager.
Marshall said Orange County recycles about seven pounds of electronics per person each year.
Electronics were among the donated items at the event Thursday.
Some of the items will be donated to the Family Violence Prevention Center of Orange County, Triangle Residential Options for Substance Abusers Inc. in Durham and victims of Hurricane Sandy.
There was also a swap shop at the drive where students could drop off and trade old clothes and school supplies.
“With the swap shop element, it was definitely more successful than years past,” said Natalia Posthill, recycling coordinator for the UNC Office of Waste Reduction and Recycling.
Alex Snedeker, a UNC senior and an intern in the Sustainability Office, said the office’s main goal is to bring recycling awareness to the Carolina community.
“The visibility and ease at which you can recycle on campus is very convenient. There is no reason not to recycle,” Snedeker said.
BJ Tipton, manager of the Solid Waste Program at UNC, said the University recycles around 38 percent of waste produced.
Though Orange County did not host an event Thursday, Gayle Wilson, solid waste management director for the county, said recycling is still a priority in the county.
“In Orange County, everyday is recycling day. We don’t need a special day,” Wilson said.
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