In 1997, Stanford University and Peninsula Sanitary Service, Inc. (PSSI) invested in an automated sorting machine to separate recyclables to get cleaner material that was more valuable for manufacturers. This enhanced equipment used magnets, jets of air, and other mechanisms to strategically sort out materials by commodity type. Other types of recyclables were sorted by hand by PSSI employees as the material moved along the conveyor belt.
This sorting line processed over 9 million pounds of recyclables. In 2020, the line was decommissioned. Rather than sending it to metal recycling and landfill, Stanford donated the line to a company in McFarland, California where it has been repurposed to help turn food byproducts into animal feed.
Finding a new purpose for this machinery is an example of being a wasteless community. It also helped the wider California community reduce costs and emissions through reuse.
From sustainable beats and food recovery leaps, the year 2025 set a new standard for Stanford traditions and operations.
We’re building our zero waste playbook—starting with the stats. By hand-sorting our trash, we’re uncovering strategic cuts to the landfill.
The university earns STARS Platinum in version 3.0, the highest score under the sustainability rating system.
