By Lookout Staff
November 20 -- The Starbucks coffee shop on the
Santa Monica College Campus is not only seriving up strong
brews, it's giving students a lesson on what it means to
go green.
Established on campus in 1988, TCBY/Starbucks has been
certified as a "Green Business," thanks to several
of owner Mike Eghbali's environmentally sensitive business
practices.
"Not only are his coffee beans fair-trade certified,
but used coffee grounds are collected and then composted
in the college's industrial vermi-composter, which uses
worms to transform food waste into a nutrient-rich compost
that is then used to fertilize the campus grounds,"
said Genevieve Bertone, SMC's sustainability coordination
project manager.
To further reduce waste, Eghbali purchases recycled paper
napkins, and his printing paper contains 30 percent post-consumer
content recycled material. All to-go containers are recyclable
or compostable in compliance with the City of Santa Monica's
Non-Recyclable Food Service Container Ban.
The shop's administrative staff has been refilling printing
cartridges instead of throwing them out when they're empty
-- saving money as well as the energy, water and petroleum
used to produce the plastic for the cartridge.
