Anthony Burgos

Statistical Analysis of Ecological Systems

Dr. Aaron Stoler
12/14/2021
Final Project
Intro:
Recycling is one of the main ways in which the public may engage in sustainability. The
average person may not visit a landfill or recycling center every day, but they will likely throw
some waste away in the trash or recycling. Much of the goods purchased by consumers come
contained in plastic or metal. Single-serve water bottles or cans that are thrown into the trash
instead of recycling often go into landfills. The EPA says that 18.5 percent of the landfills in the
United States are filled with plastic with more arriving every year. (Environmental Protection
Agency, 2018). Recycled items like cans and soda bottles that can be recirculated back into new
containers reduce the need for new ones to be manufactured. In addition to the sheer logistical
problem so much plastic creates, there is also concern for human health. The effects of
microplastics in both the environment and in the health of humans are just beginning to reveal
themselves. A study on the human consumption of microplastics estimated that the annual
amount of microplastics consumed ranged from 74000 to 121000 particles per year (Cox, et al.
2019). There have been major efforts to communicate the need to recycle to the American public.
Campaigns like “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” and the Gary Anderson three arrow recycle symbol
design have become well known in the United States. Despite the prevalence of this messaging
aimed at improving recycling participation in the United States, there are few studies examining
its efficacy.
A variety of drinks and food are served in plastic at the dining halls and vending
machines of universities. There is almost always a recycling receptacle with signage present
within eyesight on campus. However, in my observations, not every individual recycles when
given the choice to do so. Recycling signage is supposed to communicate the idea that anyone
may recycle their waste within the receptacle displaying it.
Given the importance of recycling, my study explores the effects that existing recycling
signage on receptacles has on the rate at which individuals choose to recycle. I looked at the
recycling habits in the food court of a university. I hypothesize that the existing signage on
receptacles have a positive effect on individuals' recycling habits. Given my hypothesis, I predict
that the rate at which individuals recycle will increase when signage is present. To test my
hypothesis, I conducted an experiment that observed recycling rates both when signage was
present and when signage was hidden from view.
Methods:
Stockton is a university in Galloway, New Jersey. In addition to the Galloway campus
Stockton has satellite campuses in Hammonton and Atlantic City as well. It has a student
population of approximately 9,000. Stockton in Galloway, in which this experiment took place,
sits in 1,600 acres of Pinelands.
To conduct my experiment, I sat in the dining hall at a table facing the stairwell that leads
to the campus center at Stockton University. In my view there were two receptacles in which
individuals could either recycle or dispose of their items into the trash. Trash and recycling stand
side to side at approximately one and a third meters tall. The trash is a dark charcoal color with a
rectangular opening. The trash’ rectangular opening works for the cardboard trays and pizza
boxes sold in the dining hall. The recycle is colored royal blue with a circle centered within an
elongated oval. The recycles circle within the oval open implies that it can be used for bottles
cans, and other various plastics that can fit the shape. I observed randomly assigned hour-long
sessions of either exposed or hidden recycling signage for ten total trials (five & five). For
observation sessions in which the signage was hidden I cut a piece of posterboard to the shape of
the recycling symbol on each receptacle. This section of posterboard matched the receptacle in
color. The posterboard was held in place by pieces of tape between the board and the exterior of
the receptacle where the signage is displayed. I counted every instance in which a participant
disposed of waste either in the trash or recycling and called that an encounter. The number of
times participants recycled divided by the total number of encounters revealed recycling use as a
percentage. I recorded these percentages to analyze the rate of recycling use both when signage
was and was not present.

Statistics:
I used an analysis of variance.

Results:
I did not find a significant effect on increased recycling rates when signage was present.
(F= 0.067201, Among DF=1, Within DF=8, P=0.802).
Discussion:

The evidence does not support my hypothesis. I found that the presence of signage does
not significantly increase the rate of recycling. This symbol that is everywhere and serves just
one purpose had almost no effect when taken away. The presence of signage does not influence
habits the way I thought it would. This may be due to a variety of factors. My experiment has
identified that the three-arrow recycling symbol, as it exists now, is insignificant among these
factors. Participants did not significantly alter their behavior according to the presence or
absence of the symbol.
In a similar study at the Rush Medical School in Chicago, IL, researchers found that
changing signage alone was ineffective at increasing recycling among participants (Andrews et
al, 2012). Many waste receptacles at Stockton university lack any information further than the
three-arrow design and blue color to indicate that the receptacle is used to recycle waste. Many
of the Stockton receptacles make no mention of what can be recycled. This leaves the decision
for the user to figure out. Often, this decision ends with their contents all going into the trash. In
my talks with dining hall staff, they remarked that in terms of bulk output, trash waste was far
more common than recycling. According to the director I have spoken to Chartwells, the
contacted food vendor for the university, uses packaging that is ecofriendly and compostable.
The University, however, has no such compost program to take advantage of this.
The Rush Medical School study also found that two or three recycling receptacles next to
trash cans with picture images of permitted waste may be the best for recycling accuracy
(Andrews, et al. 2012). This idea of pictures increasing recycling accuracy is mirrored in other
studies. Especially when standardized, meaning uniform in appearance and placement, pictures
of permitted items increased accuracy more than just displaying the words for those items.
However, signage presenting both permitted items and non-permitted items can skew this
accuracy (Wu, et al. 2018). These studies, including my own, suggest that to optimize recycling
rate and accuracy, signage needs to be standardized, graphical (informing of permitted items),
and convenient. Convenient, in their experiment, meant that there were multiple bins available
for various recyclable waste. Otherwise, recyclable items might be thrown out in the garbage. In
future experiments, I would like to manipulate the signage further. I would like to manipulate the
symbols size, color, or anything that would get the attention of the individuals that visit. If results
were similar after such manipulations, then other influences affecting recycling could be
explored. Conducting an experiment by dividing up the dining hall with half of the current
recycling bins against the suggested improved accuracy bins could be quite revealing. After this
experiment the recyclable items remaining in the trash after a day of business could be sorted and
weighed to reveal an actual difference in performance.
The presence or absence of signage as it exists now at Stockton university seems to have
a minimal effect. Perhaps there is confusion about what is or is not recyclable. More effective
communication and multiple sorting bins could have an impact if adopted by the school. In the
dining hall especially, a greater effort to inform individuals of what is recyclable from the items
they sell could see an increase in the rate of recycling.
 Works Cited:
Andrews, Ashley, et al. "Comparison of recycling outcomes in three types of recycling
collection units." Waste Management 33.3 (2013): 530-535.
Cox, Kieran D., et al. "Human consumption of microplastics." Environmental science &
technology 53.12 (2019): 7068-7074.
Wu, David W-L., et al. "How does the design of waste disposal signage influence waste
disposal behavior?" Journal of Environmental Psychology 58 (2018): 77-85.
"Facts and Figures about Materials, Waste and Recycling." Environmental Protection
Agency,
www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/plastics-material-specific-d
ata.