Less is More: Terrapin Trader Converts Surplus Property to Surplus Resources

Photographs and story by Ken Lai

If one's trash truly becomes another's treasure, then Terrapin Trader is where the transformations happen at the University of Maryland. As the university's innovative surplus operation, Terrapin Trader identifies, gathers, processes, donates and auctions surplus school equipment to university departments, state organizations and the public. Everything from tables and chairs to computers and even cars are up for grabs.

Surplus operations are a growing trend among colleges and universities. As the only surplus facility in the region, Terrapin Trader manages surplus equipment for University System of Maryland schools, American, Catholic and other area colleges and universities.

Virtually everything that is used by a university like Maryland can be reused, redistributed, or recycled one way or another. At a time when conservation and cost efficiency are increasingly important to colleges and universities, surplus stores such as Terrapin Trader can provide solutions through recycling.

"Everything we do here is recycling," says Larry Walton, assistant director of procurement and supply at the University of Maryland's Physical Distribution Center. "Our definition of recycling includes traditional recycling as well as reusing equipment that would otherwise head to a landfill."

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