Waste sorting at ITMO

Primary resources, such as oil or wood, are not limitless, while certain types of waste take longer than an average human life to decompose. By recycling waste, we can partially solve this problem through lowering the amount of raw materials required for production and offering a new life to the collected waste.

What happens to recycled waste?

• 20 PET bottles -> 12 felt iPad cases
• 3 kg waste paper -> 1 ream of A4 paper
• 23,000 aluminum cans -> 1 light-sport aircraft

It is always a university’s administration that is responsible for its environmental footprint and introducing green practices into student life. As a member of the Association of Green Universities of Russia, ITMO strives to be at the top not only in research, but also in environmental rankings. Separate waste collection is essential for a socially responsible university.

Waste sorting is a great initiative that doesn’t require a lot of effort. Moreover, it’s teamwork, where each member is equally important. This way. ITMO students and staff can bond over the shared problem of the university’s environmental footprint, and the common effort towards solving it serves as something to be proud of together.

At ITMO, you can recycle:

• PET, PETE: plastic bottles for beverages;
• PEHD, HDPE: plastic bottles from detergents, shampoos, or makeup;
• PP: food containers.

Before putting plastic into the recycling bin, make sure to clean it: empty it, wash it, and crush it.

At ITMO, you can’t recycle:

• PVC (polyvinyl chloride);
• Unmarked plastic Candy wrappers, toothbrushes, plastic straws;
• Tetra Pak and Pure Pak packaging.

Some of the items that you can’t recycle at ITMO can be recycled at the nearest waste sorting at the nearest waste sorting station – find our more at recyclemap.ru. 

At ITMO, you can recycle:

Glass containers: jars or bottles.

At ITMO, you can’t recycle:

• Ceramics and glassware: glasses, cups, plates;
• Pan lids Optics: eyeglasses, lenses;
• Light bulbs;
• Mirrors.

Some of the items that you can’t recycle at ITMO can be recycled at the nearest waste sorting at the nearest waste sorting station – find our more at recyclemap.ru. 

At ITMO, paper collection is provided through the RecycleStarter service. This service is not intended for public areas; therefore, please register your office by following the link. At ITMO, you can recycle:

• Office paper
• Cardboard (including corrugated cardboard);
• Books, magazines, newspapers, office paper, notebooks, flyers, paper packaging;
• Shredded paper;
• Sticker books;
• Drawings made with gouache, watercolors, glue, colored paper, markers, pencils, or crayons.

At ITMO, you can’t recycle:

• Juice or milk packaging;
• Paper tissues or towels;
• Laminated paper;
• Parchment or waxed paper, baking paper, tracing paper;
• Paper cups;
• Fax paper;
• Photo paper;
• Receipts.

Some of the items that you can’t recycle at ITMO can be recycled at the nearest waste sorting at the nearest waste sorting station – find our more at recyclemap.ru. 

At ITMO, the following can be recycled — aluminum cans of all sizes

The following cannot be recycled at ITMO:

• Tin cans
• Aerosol containers

At ITMO University, collection bins for plastic cards have been installed in cooperation with the "Koshelek" application at the following locations: Lomonosova St., 9 (Library) and Kronverksky Pr., 49 (Coworking Space).

Accepted card types:

• Discount cards
• Transport cards
• Gift certificates

Please ensure that all bank cards are blocked prior to disposal. The collected cards are sent for recycling to the enterprise 7 Other in St. Petersburg.

Recycling process of plastic cards:

1. Shredding
2. Separation of chips from plastic particles
3. Further grinding into powder or remelting into granules, followed by transfer to manufacturing

Products made from the recycled material include:

• Siding
• Pipes
• Window sills, etc.

Additional collection points can be found on the project’s official website.

Collection bins are located at the following ITMO buildings: Kronverksky Pr., 49 (Coworking Space) and Lomonosova St., 9 (near auditorium 1315).

Where do the caps go?

The caps are transferred to the “Kind Caps” project, where they are sorted by color and sent for recycling. The proceeds from recycling are directed to charitable purposes. On the project’s website, you can learn more about its beneficiaries and the people who have received help thanks to cap collection.