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University ranks high in key recycling categories Based on its population and the total amount of waste material recycled per person, MUSC ranked fifth among colleges and universities nationwide competing in the RecycleMania campaign.   MUSC ranked in the top five in three of the seven categories in which it competed during the 10-week recycling contest that involved a total of 400 colleges and universities in 46 states and the District of Columbia.   Not all 400 schools entered each of the eight competition categories. MUSC competed in seven of the eight categories. Overall, MUSC ranked third in two key categories: cumulative pounds per person of paper recycled (averaging 30.14 pounds per person was recycled) in which 163 schools competed; and cumulative pounds per person of cardboard recycled (amounting to an average 23.54 per person recycled) in which 106 schools competed. In the so-called guerilla competition, MUSC ranked 19th among 200 schools by the cumulative amount of waste material recycled during a 10-week period ending April 5. MUSC recyclers collected and recycled a total of 555,567 pounds of paper, cardboard, cans and bottles. The other categories in which MUSC ranked were: 43rd—Grand Champion, representing the cumulative recycling rate of 25.38 percent (88 schools competing); 92nd—Waste Minimization, representing cumulative pounds of waste minimization, or activities that diverted waste from trash for reuse or recycling per person (an average if 215.06 pounds; 95 schools competing); 109th—Bottles and Cans, representing the cumulative pounds per person of bottles and cans recycled (.90 pounds per person; 161 schools competing). The competition, which begins Jan. 27, is a fun-but-serious rivalry among students, faculty and staff to increase on-campus recycling rates beyond their collegiate competitors. When the competition was over, more than 58 million pounds of recyclables and organics had been recovered across the country.   The spirit of friendly competition sparked huge environmental gains equivalent to preventing the release of 25,342 metric tons of carbon equivalent (MTCE), organizers said. In real world terms, this reduction in green house gases is equivalent to eliminating the impact caused in a year by 15,439 passenger cars; the electricity use of 11,165 homes; or the burning of 440 railcars’-worth of coal.   For the 2008 competition, schools were divided into two divisions, those participating across their entire campus (Whole Campus Division) and those competing with only a subsection (Partial Campus Division).   For additional information, visit http://www.recyclemaniacs.org.     Friday, May 16, 2008 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Publications at 849-1778, ext. 201.