Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Availability

Open Access Thesis

Keywords

Recycling (Waste, etc)--Iowa; Public schools--Iowa; Public schools; Recycling (Waste, etc); Iowa;

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to describe the waste management practices utilized in randomly selected Iowa public schools overall and stratified by student enrollment. The sample consisted of 100 public schools in Iowa. All public schools with enrollments of 900 or more were chosen. The remaining schools in this sample were selected based on stratified random sampling techniques. A questionnaire was constructed to ascertain the presence and extent of waste management in Iowa public schools. This questionnaire was used as the tool for collecting data. Of the 100 questionnaires mailed in this study, 76 were returned. The questionnaire was analyzed descriptively by compilation of frequencies and percentages for responses to each question. The results from this study indicated that there is considerable emphasis in Iowa public schools to recycle various paper products in separate containers. Most administrative offices and classrooms have receptacles for the recycling of paper. The reuse of envelopes, boxes, and packaging materials also occurs commonly. Materials from the cafeteria that had a high frequency of recycling were soda pop cans and aluminum beverage containers. Items not recycled very often were cardboard boxes, tin cans, plastic, glass bottles/jars, and juice boxes. Schools with enrollment of <900 report higher percentages of recycling for many of the items, with the exception of paper. In the cafeteria, reusable trays, cups, and flatware were used more often and materials such as cardboard boxes, plastic, glass bottles/jars, and soda pop cans were reported as being recycled a larger percentage of the time than schools with enrollment >900. The only exception were tin cans which were recycled more commonly in large schools. Schools with enrollment <900 reported fewer dumpsters filled than the schools with enrollment >900.

Year of Submission

1992

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

School of Health, Physical Education, and Leisure Services

First Advisor

Sue A. Joslyn

Second Advisor

Dennis Cryer

Third Advisor

Susan J. Koch

Comments

If you are the rightful copyright holder of this thesis and wish to have it removed from the Open Access Collection, please submit a request to scholarworks@uni.edu and include clear identification of the work, preferably with URL.

Date Original

1992

Object Description

1 PDF file (71 leaves)

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

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