Submitted by Grainne Kennedy on Tue, 2016-09-27 12:55
Last month we ran a waste & recycling quiz as part of Spotlight on Waste month. Congratulations to the winners - Haskan from Gonville & Caius College and Julian from the Clifford Allbutt Building who won Fairtrade chocolate, and Naomi from the Judge Business School and Magda from the Gurdon Institute who won a bottle of Fairtrade wine. You can still try the quiz just for fun here; otherwise skip straight to the answers below!
1. How many tonnes of waste did the University of Cambridge recycle in 2014-15?
Answer: 900 tonnes (or 3 Boeing 747s)
2. Of all the waste that the University departments throw away into general waste bins, what percentage could have been recycled?
Answer: 42 per cent
3. Which of these CANNOT be recycled in the University’s mixed recycling bins?
Answer: Polystyrene
4. When dealing with rubbish, according to the UK government which of the following should always be considered first?
Answer: Reduce it (buy less of the product or opt for less packaging)
5. What proportion of production energy is saved by making an aluminium can from recycled materials rather than from raw materials?
Answer: 95 per cent
6. How long does it take for the average UK citizen to throw away their own body weight in waste?
Answer: 7 weeks
7. How many times can glass be recycled?
Answer: Indefinitely
8. If everyone in the UK recycled 10% more paper, approximately how many trees could be saved every year?
Answer: 5 million trees