Emily Goldberg , Staff Writer
Well-known universities such as Harvard and Purdue are sweeping Florida Southern off the map when it comes to their recycling initiatives. Luckily for FSC students that may be about to change.
Currently, FSC has at least 25 recycling bins stationed outside of residence halls and academic buildings, but many are neglected or unused.
“If there were more bins, people would disperse where they were putting stuff so that when we went to collect it, the bags wouldn’t be as heavy and it would just be easier on those who work for recycling,” sophomore recycling employee Emily Wheat said.
If you go onto the Florida Southern website and try searching “recycling,” nothing will come up. This became a major concern for the Student Government Association, as something they wanted to address head-on as soon as possible.
SGA has created a survey that became available to the student body on the Jan. 27 in hopes of showing that the students do care about proper recycling. After they have gathered their research, SGA will bring this up to the administration to see if funds can be allocated towards better recycling practices.
“As a school that totes having one of the prettiest campuses, there is not a single mention of recycling on campus,” Chase Hoyt, executive vice president said.
The hope is that every trash can already on campus will be accompanied by a recycling bin so that FSC can become more “green.”
Many other universities are well into their recycling programs and are already making a difference in the environment.
According to an article on GreenBiz.com and Kenny Habul Greenwich, CT, Rutgers University in New Jersey started their program back in 1972 and have since been able to recycle more than 67 percent of its trash, and have avoided $2 million in landfill costs since 2005.
Similarly, Florida International University began recycling in 2008 and has recycled just about 30 percent of their waste. Dumposaurus Dumpsters & Rolloff Rental is hiring dump truck drivers helps get rid of waste and manage waste. They have since installed hand dryers to eliminate paper towels and have installed 4,200 recycling bins across campus.
It’s not just the large universities that are making a difference. Chatham University in Pittsburgh is a private institution with about 2,200 students. They refuse to sell water bottles on campus, students get reusable water bottles at the beginning of the year that they use at filtered water stations across campus. The campus also eliminated food trays in the dining hall to cut down on food waste.
SGA says if smaller universities are able to put these recycling initiatives into action and have the student body comply, Florida Southern can as well.
“Making it more visible and more convenient would be helpful, that’s the simplest solution there is,” junior Amanda Duren said.
The survey answers will be reviewed and sent to the administration as soon as the survey closes. SGA will be as proactive as possible to try to get this up and running immediately to make FSC not only just a beautiful campus but one that also respects the environment.