One question that has remained consistent since the beginning of the 2025 fall semester is: where have all the trash cans gone?
Exterior trash cans around campus were removed due to three main components: sustainability, operational savings and wildlife concerns.
Chris Miller, the special events coordinator for Clemson University Facilities, explained why each component was brought to the attention of facilities.
While promoting sustainability, Miller noted that when choosing to remove exterior trash cans around campus, facilities anticipated a result that “waste items would be brought into buildings, and by placing a multi-bin recycling station near the entrance, they would be captured in the recycling waste system.”
From a sustainability perspective, the goal was to decrease Clemson’s carbon footprint. Miller explained that everything, including recyclables, is thrown into the exterior trash cans, which then go straight to the landfill.
When elaborating on operations and cost savings, Miller outlined all the different groups responsible for ensuring these trash cans were not overflowing. These people include the facilities’ custodial staff, a landscaping services group and Clemson’s own custodial contractor.
While “going out to these exterior trash cans multiple times a day to service them … quantified to a significant amount of time away from their assigned areas,” Miller told The Tiger.
Miller explained that “the mobility involved in that equates to a labor cost that substantially vastly outweighs.”
Facilities has expressed concerns about wildlife, as there has been a “longstanding connection between the exterior cans and wildlife,” even when they are regularly serviced, according to Miller.
Staff have noticed rodents, predator animals and “flying pests like yellow jackets” surrounding the waste that was sitting out in the open. This ultimately raised a safety concern that the University could not ignore.
Miller told The Tiger that an initiative to remove exterior trash cans had been in effect for years. During an audit over the summer, it was discovered that several trash cans were still in place and hadn’t been removed.
In 2011, the University released a Sustainable Action Plan with two main goals:
“Sustainability will be an integral part of the educational experiment for all Clemson students,” and “Clemson’s campus will be a model of energy sustainability and operate as a ‘carbon neutral’ campus by 2030.”
Miller is unsure as to why the trash cans “were missed for so long,” but explained that this is why the removal coincided with this semester specifically.
He also explained that some trash cans “remain at some of the higher volume bus stops and outside dining areas.” These cans are ultimately maintained by Parking Services and Aramark.
Clemson Facilities intends for this to be a long-term practice, meaning the trash cans will remain inside.
