Zero Waste at Ohio Stadium
Zero Waste at Ohio Stadium
Who says game days can't be sustainable?
Ohio Stadium is the largest stadium in the country to continuously achieve zero waste status, which refers to diverting 90% or more of materials from the landfill by recycling, repurposing, and composting. The Ohio State University has set a new standard for collegiate stadium recycling, and has ranked #1 in diversion rate within the Big Ten conference for the past seven years.
Contact ATH-Sustains@osu.edu for more information.
Finding a Place for Waste at Ohio Stadium
The Department of Athletics Sustainability program partners with the “I Am Change Outreach,” a non-profit mentorship program of area high school and college students who become members of the Zero Waste Team. These students educate fans about the zero waste program and provide the first round of sorting of recycling and compost generated at Ohio Stadium on game days.
2022 Season
| Game | Date | Trash | Recycle | Compost | Diversion | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notre Dame | 9/3/2022 | 3.29 | 11.41 | 10.43 | 86.93% | 106,594 |
| Arkansas State | 9/10/2022 | 2.71 | 7.69 | 8.12 | 85.36% | 100,067 |
| Toledo | 9/17/2022 | 2.57 | 8.68 | 7.37 | 86.21% | 105,398 |
| Wisconsin | 9/24/2022 | 2.66 | 9.43 | 9.42 | 87.61% | 105,473 |
| Rutgers | 10/2/2022 | 2.45 | 8.06 | 6.83 | 85.89% | 104,245 |
| Iowa | 10/22/2022 | 2.47 | 9.08 | 6.19 | 86.05% | 104,848 |
| Indiana | 11/12/2022 | 2.44 | 8.22 | 7.46 | 86.54% | 103,888 |
| Michigan | 11/26/2022 | 2.38 | 12.56 | 10.04 | 87.00% | 106,787 |
| Season Total | 21.96 | 75.12 | 65.85 | 837,300 | ||
| Season Average | 2.75 | 9.39 | 8.23 | 86.45% | 104,663 |
2021 Season
| Game | Date | Trash | Recycle | Compost | Diversion | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon | 9/11/2021 | 6.68 | 6.10 | 4.03 | 60.26% | 100,482 |
| Tulsa | 9/18/2021 | 2.70 | 8.19 | 8.26 | 85.89% | 76,540 |
| Akron | 9/25/2021 | 1.99 | 5.65 | 7.88 | 87.17% | 95,178 |
| Maryland | 10/9/2021 | 2.55 | 5.92 | 8.09 | 84.61% | 99,277 |
| Penn State | 10/30/2021 | 2.94 | 8.33 | 8.12 | 84.82% | 102,951 |
| Purdue | 11/13/2021 | 2.86 | 5.77 | 7.37 | 82.10% | 101,009 |
| Michigan State | 11/20/2021 | 1.46 | 6.71 | 7.29 | 90.55% | 101,858 |
| Season Total | 21.20 | 46.66 | 51.05 | 677,295 | ||
| Season Average | 3.29 | 6.66 | 7.29 | 82.20% | 95,906 | |
2020 Season
| Game | Date | Trash | Recycle | Compost | Diversion | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | 10/24/2020 | 0.27 | 1.32 | 0.03 | 83.36% | 1344 |
| Rutgers | 11/7/2020 | 0.12 | 1.30 | 0.08 | 91.75% | 1275 |
| 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | #DIV/0! | |||
| 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | #DIV/0! | |||
| Season Total | 0.40 | 2.63 | 0.11 | 0 | ||
| Season Average | 0.07 | 0.44 | 0.02 | 87.55% | #DIV/0! |
2019 Season
| GAME | DATE | TRASH | RECYCLE | COMPOST | DIVERSION | ATTENDANCE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida Atlantic | 8/31/2019 | 2.50 | 8.155 | 7.71 | 86.38% | 103,228 |
| Cincinnati | 9/7/2019 | 2.59 | 7.592 | 10.32 | 87.37% | 104,089 |
| Miami | 9/21/2019 | 2.31 | 10.309 | 10.19 | 89.89% | 103,190 |
| Michigan State | 10/5/2019 | 2.38 | 7.484 | 11.10 | 88.66% | 104,797 |
| Wisconsin | 10/26/2019 | 2.28 | 7.472 | 11.97 | 89.50% | 102,998 |
| Maryland | 11/9/2019 | 1.82 | 5.169 | 8.35 | 88.12% | 101,022 |
| Penn State | 11/23/2019 | 1.86 | 4.975 | 11.52 | 89.88% | 104,355 |
| Season Total | 15.74 | 51.16 | 71.16 | 88.60% | 723,679 | |
| Season Average | 2.25 | 7.31 | 10.17 | 88.54% | 103,383 |
2018 Season
| GAME | DATE | TRASH | RECYCLE | COMPOST | DIVERSION |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oregon State | 9/1/2018 | 0.82 | 2.97 | 11.69 | 94.72% |
| Rutgers | 9/8/2018 | 0.85 | 3.87 | 11.44 | 94.76% |
| Tulane | 9/22/2018 | 0.92 | 4.81 | 10.29 | 94.24% |
| Indiana | 10/6/2018 | 0.93 | 4.38 | 10.76 | 94.24% |
| Minnesota | 10/13/2018 | 0.96 | 3.59 | 10.40 | 93.59% |
| Nebraska | 11/3/2018 | 1.16 | 5.76 | 10.82 | 93.45% |
| Michigan | 11/24/2018 | 1.31 | 6.42 | 13.51 | 93.81% |
| Season Total | 6.95 | 31.79 | 78.90 | ||
| Season Average | 0.99 | 4.54 | 11.27 | 94.12% |
2017 Season
| GAME | DATE | TRASH | RECYCLE | COMPOST | DIVERSION | ATTENDANCE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | 9/9/2017 | 2.51 | 5.90 | 7.49 | 84.19% | 109,088 |
| Army | 9/16/2017 | 2.45 | 4.69 | 7.80 | 83.60% | 108,414 |
| UNLV | 9/23/2017 | 4.10 | 4.22 | 9.65 | 77.18% | 106,187 |
| Maryland | 10/7/2017 | 0.90 | 6.05 | 8.51 | 94.19% | 107,180 |
| Penn State | 10/28/2018 | 0.89 | 6.29 | 8.04 | 94.13% | 109,302 |
| Michigan State | 11/11/2018 | 0.78 | 5.20 | 6.12 | 93.52% | 107,011 |
| Illinois | 11/18/2017 | 0.91 | 5.99 | 6.24 | 93.09% | 105,282 |
| Season Total | 12.55 | 38.33 | 53.87 | 752,464 | ||
| Season Average | 179 | 5.48 | 7.70 | 88.02% | 107,495 |
2016 Season
| GAME | DATE | TRASH | RECYCLE | COMPOST | DIVERSION | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bowling Green | 9/3/2016 | 0.73 | 8.83 | 4.64 | 94.85% | 107,193 |
| Tulsa | 9/10/2016 | 0.89 | 9.91 | 5.86 | 94.67% | 104,410 |
| Rutgers | 10/1/2016 | 0.57 | 7.84 | 5.08 | 95.77% | 105,830 |
| Indiana | 10/8/2016 | 0.62 | 8.01 | 4.80 | 95.40% | 107,420 |
| Northwestern | 10/29/2016 | 0.61 | 8.03 | 5.13 | 95.56% | 107,296 |
| Nebraska | 11/5/2018 | 0.64 | 7.83 | 5.57 | 95.43% | 108,750 |
| Michigan | 11/26/2017 | 0.56 | 8.14 | 6.18 | 96.23% | 110,045 |
| Season Total | 4.62 | 58.59 | 37.25 | 750,944 | ||
| Season Average | 0.66 | 8.37 | 5.32 | 95.40% | 107,278 |
2015 Season
| GAME | DATE | TRASH | RECYCLE | COMPOST | DIVERSION | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 9/12/2015 | 0.41 | 6.52 | 6.17 | 96.84% | 107,145 |
| Northern Illinois | 9/19/2015 | 0.33 | 6.38 | 4.38 | 96.99% | 104,095 |
| Western Michigan | 9/26/2015 | 0.43 | 5.05 | 5.46 | 96.05% | 106,123 |
| Maryland | 10/10/2015 | 0.48 | 3.96 | 5.96 | 96.37% | 107,869 |
| Penn State | 10/17/2015 | 0.34 | 4.74 | 3.91 | 96.23% | 108,423 |
| Minnesota | 11/7/2015 | 0.25 | 4.03 | 3.17 | 96.62% | 108,075 |
| Michigan State | 11/26/2015 | 0.32 | 5.32 | 3.03 | 96.26% | 110,045 |
| Season Total | 2.58 | 36.01 | 32.07 | 750,705 | ||
| Season Average | 0.37 | 5.14 | 4.58 | 96.35% | 107,244 |
2014 Season
| GAME | DATE | TRASH | RECYCLE | COMPOST | DIVERSION | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia Tech | 9/6/2014 | 0.23 | 2.55 | 2.51 | 95.68% | 107,517 |
| Kent State | 9/13/2014 | 0.47 | 3.09 | 4.55 | 94.17% | 104,404 |
| Cincinnati | 9/27/2014 | 0.36 | 3.63 | 1.93 | 93.88% | 108,362 |
| Rutgers | 10/18/2014 | 0.48 | 3.12 | 2.07 | 93.82% | 106,795 |
| Illinois | 11/1/2014 | 0.16 | 3.31 | 2.65 | 97.34% | 106,961 |
| Indiana | 11/22/2014 | 0.07 | 2.04 | 3.33 | 98.68% | 101,426 |
| Michigan | 11/29/2014 | 0.31 | 2.06 | 2.06 | 93.10% | 108,610 |
| Season Total | 1.95 | 19.79 | 19.12 | 744,075 | ||
| Season Average | 0.28 | 2.83 | 2.73 | 95.24% | 106,296 |
2013 Season
| GAME | DATE | TRASH | RECYCLE | COMPOST | DIVERSION | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo | 8/31/2013 | 0.30 | 4.67 | 3.57 | 96.5% | 103,980 |
| San Diego State | 9/7/2013 | 0.35 | 6.23 | 5.02 | 97.0% | 104,984 |
| Florida A&M | 9/21/2013 | 0.24 | 3.09 | 5.09 | 97.1% | 103,595 |
| Wisconsin | 9/28/2013 | 0.11 | 2.51 | 4.65 | 98.5% | 105,826 |
| Iowa# | 10/19/2013 | 4.36 | 2.45 | 3.09 | 56.0% | 105,264 |
| Penn State | 10/26/2013 | 0.28 | 2.65 | 5.11 | 96.5% | 105,889 |
| Indiana | 11/23/2013 | 0.14 | 2.10 | 4.75 | 98.10% | 104,990 |
| Season Total | 5.8 | 23.7 | 31.3 | 90.5% | 734,528 | |
| Season Average | 0.8 | 3.4 | 4.5 | 90.5% | 104,933 |
2012 Season
| GAME | DATE | TRASH | RECYCLE | COMPOST | DIVERSION | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami (OH)* | 9/21/2012 | 6.4 | 22.6 | 6.5 | 81.9% | 105,039 |
| UCF* | 9/8/2012 | 2.1 | 6.9 | 3.5 | 83.2% | 104,745 |
| California* | 9/15/2012 | 2.6 | 7.0 | 3.5 | 79.9% | 105,232 |
| UAB* | 9/22/2012 | 2.1 | 7.5 | 4.1 | 84.6% | 105,019 |
| Nebraska+ | 10/06/2012 | 1.5 | 5.4 | 4.6 | 87.0% | 106,102 |
| Purdue+ | 10/20/2012 | 0.8 | 6.4 | 7.7 | 94.4% | 105,290 |
| Illinois+ | 11/3/2012 | 0.2 | 6.5 | 5.5 | 98.2% | 105,311 |
| Michigan+ | 11/24/2012 | 0.3 | 6.1 | 5.9 | 97.4% | 105,899 |
| Season Total | 16.2 | 68.5 | 41.3 | 87.2% | 842,637 | |
| Season Average | 2.0 | 8.6 | 5.2 | 87.2% | 105,330 |
Tailgate Recycling Program
The Tailgate Recycling Program is one component of Zero Waste at Ohio Stadium, and Ohio State’s participation in the Game Day Recycling Challenge. During football game-days please recycle plastic and glass bottles and aluminum cans, disposing of all other items into the trash dumpsters in tailgate lots. View our Sustainability Fan Guide for additional tips to make your game day experience more environmentally responsible.
