The following questions will test your knowledge of the recycling effort at Wittenberg as well as some issues that extend beyond the campus. Start with the basics, and then see how you fair in the more challenging categories. All of the answers to these questions can be found on this website, and you can check your answers at any point simply by going to the answer key.
Getting Started: The Basics
The questions in this section are derived from the Recycling Guidelines page.
1. What are the four main categories of recyclable material in Wittenberg’s program?
| a.) | glass |
| b.) | styrofoam |
| c.) | food waste |
| d.) | plastic |
| e.) | yard Waste |
| f.) | paper |
| g.) | metal |
2. Which of the following materials are recyclable?
| a.) | empty and clean yogurt containers |
| b.) | napkins used to soak up grease |
| c.) | napkins used to soak of pop |
| d.) | glossy magazines |
| e.) | newspapers, including inserts |
| f.) | batteries |
| g.) | empty glass bottles |
| h.) | tin cans with labels left on them |
| i.) | paper cups |
| j.) | plastic cups |
| k.) | clean styrofoam takeout containers |
| l.) | printer paper with a staple in it |
| m.) | cardboard |
| n.) | empty pizza boxes |
| o.) | plastic wrap from a sandwich in Post 95 |
| p.) | plastic knives, forks, and spoons |
| q.) | empty plastic bottles with the cap included |
| r.) | junk mail including envelopes with plastic windows |
| s.) | clean aluminum foil |
| t.) | hardback books |
| u.) | telephone and paperback books |
| v.) | light bulbs |
| w.) | plastic grocery bags |
| x.) | post-it notes with significant ink on them |
| y.) | broken glass |
| z.) | aerosol cans |
Getting Warmed Up: Questions for the More Advanced Recycler
The questions in this section are derived from the Reasons to Recycle page.
3. Recycling has consequences for which of the following environmental issues:
| a.) | raw material conservation |
| b.) | animal habitat conservation |
| c.) | global warming |
| d.) | energy conservation |
| e.) | all of the above |
| f.) | a, c, and d, but not b |
4. How much waste does the average American produce per day?
| a.) | 1 pound |
| b.) | 2.7 pounds |
| c.) | 4.6 pounds |
| d.) | 10 pounds |
5. The average American produces more waste than which of the following?
| a.) | Europeans |
| b.) | Australians |
| c.) | Japanese |
| d.) | Canadians |
| e.) | Americans 40 years ago |
| f.) | all of the above |
| g.) | a, c, and d, but not b |
6. Recycling an aluminum can requires what percentage less energy than producing a new one?
| a.) | 20% |
| b.) | 25% |
| c.) | 75% |
| d.) | 95% |
7. According to the EPA, the United States saved how many gallons of oil just by recycling in the year 2000?
| a.) | 5 thousand |
| b.) | 5 million |
| c.) | 5 billion |
| d.) | 5 trillion |
8. By some estimates, what percentage of the material in our landfills is either recyclable or biodegradable?
| a.) | less than 10% |
| b.) | about 25% |
| c.) | about 50% |
| d.) | about 75% |
9. According to the EPA, the average household recycles what percentage of its total waste?
| a.) | 10% |
| b.) | 32% |
| c.) | 55% |
| d.) | 61% |
10. In the spring of 2008, Wittenberg recycled around what percentage of its total waste?
| a.) | 7.3% |
| b.) | 10.9% |
| c.) | 20.5% |
| d.) | 32.3% |
Burnishing your Green Credentials: Challenging Questions about Wittenberg’s Program for the Expert Recycler
The questions in this section are derived from the page How It Works page.
11. How do our housekeepers keep trash separate from recycled material?
| a.) | They take out the trash and the recycling on different days. |
| b.) | They use clear bags for recyclable material and opaque bags for trash |
| c.) | Trash and recycling are comingled and separated later at a sorting plant. |
| d.) | They take recycling and trash to different pickup locations outside each building. |
12. How often is trash and recycling collected and removed from campus buildings?
| a.) | Both trash and recycling are collected weekly, most often on Thursdays. |
| b.) | Both trash and recycling are collected every day. |
| c.) | Both trash and recycking are collected on an as-needed basis. |
| d.) | Trash is removed every day, but recycling is collected once or twice a week depending on the building. |
13. How is the waste from campus picked up?
| a.) | Wittenberg has its own truck with separate compartments for trash and recycling. |
| b.) | Wittenberg has two separate trucks, one for recycling and the other for trash. |
| c.) | The company Waste Management picks up the trash and recycling daily from designated locations |
| d.) | The housekeeping staff puts the trash and recycling into large bins behind Krieg and the HPERC where Waste Management picks it up weekly. |
14. What does MRF stand for?
| a.) | Municipal Recycling Facility |
| b.) | Municipal Refuse Facility |
| c.) | Material Recycling Facility |
| d.) | Material Reclamation Facility |
15. How many MRFs handle all the waste from the Springfield and Dayton areas?
| a.) | 1 |
| b.) | 2 |
| c.) | 5 |
| d.) | 10 |
Check your responses using the answer key.
