In the wake of a pandemic that made PPE a regular part of our vocabulary, Utah State University (USU) chemists have sparked a movement on campus that could see mountains of disposable glove waste repurposed into something useful. As USU Today reports, these scholars are pushing a campus-wide glove recycling initiative that kicked off this spring semester, looking to tackle the sustainability issues that come hand-in-hand with necessary safety practices in labs.

According to USU Today, doctoral students Calvin Luu and Hannah Feinsilber have noticed the staggering amount of gloves discarded in their departments. "In the labs for these classes alone, the department is using about 1,000 pounds of one-time-use gloves per year," Feinsilber explained, demonstrating the scale of the issue at USU, which extends beyond just the chemistry labs but also to dining services and campus facilities. With an estimated 800 students per semester attending general chemistry classes, Luu's observations highlight a clear example of the glove waste generated campus-wide.

The initiative spearheaded by the doctoral duo involves the collection and recycling of gloves used in general and organic chemistry labs. They've successfully enlisted faculty support, uttered instructions to lab assistants, placed designated containers across labs, and have devised a plan to manage this process effectively.

Feinsilber and Luu's strategy includes the use of a zero-waste pallet bag, sourced from Terracycle, a New Jersey-based recycling company. This bag, roughly the size of a small shed, sits patiently, occupying space at the department's loading dock. "Our goal is the fill it up, send the contents off to Terracycle for recycling and start again," Feinsilber stated, as per USU Today. The simplicity of their plan underscores the practicality, they hope, will catch on with the rest of the Aggie community.

More details on the glove recycling system created by Luu and Feinsilber will be shared during USU's Earth Week observance. Feinsilber is set to present on Tuesday, April 22, at 5 p.m. in the Taggart Student Center Sunburst Lounge. "We hope everyone using disposable gloves will join us to find out how, together, we can make a big impact," Feinsilber said, as obtained by USU Today.