Pipette Tip Box and Wafer Recycling Pilot Program
Do you wish your lab could recycle more of your plastic waste?
Well, we have the initiative for you! We are partnering with several companies to reuse, redistribute, or recycle pipette tip boxes, wafers, and other plastics that come with using pipette tips in lab!
Read more about this initiative below, or check out our other Pilot Programs.
What are Green Labs Pilot Programs?
BBE is providing funding for sustainable pilot programs at Caltech! If you or your lab has a sustainable project you would like help getting off the ground, please fill out an Application Form. For reference, here is an example form for the Lomi Composting project. Submissions officially open in June 2023.
TipOne and Genesee Pipette Tip Box and Wafer Recycling Programs
Have you noticed new tip box recycling points near the mail boxes (or auditoriums *) in Alles, BI, Braun, Broad (*), Chen, and Spalding?
Green Labs has partnered with USA Scientific and Genesee to implement pilot recycling programs for pipette tip boxes and wafers from TipOne or Genesee-affiliated brands! NO PIPETTE TIPS PLEASE
Please deposit ONLY your TipOne or Genesee tip boxes and wafers here, and our vendors will either redistribute these plastics to other labs in need, or will recycle these wafers and boxes within their company. In this way, USA Scientific and Genesee are making the end-of-life waste challenges of their own products a priority, thus closing the loop, and making our labs more sustainable!
Contact Trinity Dorger from USA Scientific or Erik Lawson from Genesee when the bins are full, so they can pick up our recycling bins and redistribute or recycle the pipette tip containers.
Update: Since May 2023, we have diverted over 2,217 pounds (4,830 gallons or 18,283+ liters) of plastic waste that would have otherwise not been recycled!
Our plan: Our current recycling vendor does not accept these kinds of plastics, so they are currently being diverted to the landfill. As such, Green Labs wants to collect information during the next few months on the volume of tip boxes, wafers, etc, that Caltech BBE labs are "wasting". Then, we can see if other vendors are interested in starting recycling programs on campus, OR if there is a better solution to deal with the volume of plastics (for example: a plastic chipper).
Contact Trinity Dorger from USA Scientific when the bins are full, so she can pick up our recycling bins and redistribute or recycle the pipette tip containers.
Here is more information on USA Scientific's sustainable pipette tip lineup.
Contact Erik Lawson from Genesee when the bins are full. Also, be sure to check out Genesee's website, and email our rep for discounted quotes on pipette tips and many other lab essentials, including biodegradable gloves!
Here is more information about Genesee's sustainability commitments.