3/19/2004

SEED asks to expand recycling

Lindsay Gebhart
Daily Kent Stater

Students are the reason there isn’t more recycling on campus.

At a Students Eliminating Environmental Destruction open forum last night, Azfar Mian, director of Residence Services said the reason recycling isn’t more prominent in the residence halls is because students throw trash in the recycling, and they steal the bins.

“The biggest problem we have is contamination,” Mian said. “The containers end up growing feet. There are about 45 containers that disappear (a year). We’ve got to be able to keep the containers there.”

Steve Renner, groundskeeping supervisor for Campus Environment Operations, said students have been contaminating recycling for years.

“We used to have a roll off (container) where the new power plant is,” Renner said. “It ended up getting pulled out because it had too much trash in it.”

SEED wants the university to have a recycling bin next to every trash can. It also wants to have recycling bins in every residence hall room.

Renner said the only buildings on campus without recycling are the Allerton apartments. Their recycling was taken away after it was repeatedly contaminated, often with dirty diapers.

“It’s a sad situation,” Renner said. “(The grounds department) spends 222 man hours a week picking up trash off the ground; 80 percent is recyclable. Students have to be involved.”

SEED members said Kent State has the lowest recycling rate of any university in Ohio.

Renner said the university plans to begin a “Throw and Go” program in May at Tri-Towers. The program will allow students to recycle or donate items they don’t want to take home. A program like this exists at Bowling Green State University.

“We will channel [the donated goods] where people can get good use out of them,” Renner said. “If it is successful, [the program] will go to most of the dorms. If I can divert any of [the trash], I would consider it successful.”

Brett Wilhelm, freshman conflict management major and SEED member, said the university would save $21,000 annually if it met SEED’s goal of recycling 293 tons.

“It would save natural resources,” Wilhelm said. “It would save 6,805 trees.”

Wilhelm suggested the university start putting an environmentally friendly message in its PASS program. This way students will “get that message as a mindset before they get to campus,” Wilhelm said.

Anna Fullmer, junior English major and SEED member, said the organization plans to send a poster to Mian to be posted in the residence halls to encourage people to use the recycling bins correctly. She said recycling is good for more than just the environment.

“Recycling creates jobs; it’s good for the economy. In Ohio it (has made) $30 billion,” Fullmer said.

Mian said the key to having recycling be more successful is to involve the students.

“We are looking to add 100 (recycling bins) when students come back from spring break,” Mian said. “The biggest thing (that is needed to improve the situation) is education and support.”

E-mail: lgebhart@kent.edu