What has been considered garbage on campus will soon fit into a new, more Earth- friendly category.
Recycling will hit campus in the fall, pending administration approval. A resolution requesting the implementation of a full-scale recycling program in the residence halls and apartments was proposed and approved at the Student Government Association meeting last week.
In the past, recycling at Saint Louis University has been a success, but has been inconsistent in terms of availability. Therefore, students saw the need to introduce a full-scale program that enables residents to recycle paper, as well as other products such as plastics, glass, tin and aluminum.
A recycling program at SLU will provide “obvious benefits to the environment and goes along with what we do as concerned students, as well as enhancing the University’s mission,” said Joey Kneer, College of Public Service undergraduate senator.
The recycling program proposed by SGA has the support of Housing and Residence Life and Facilities Services. Support for the program exists within other student organizations, particularly Just Earth and Presidential Scholars. The departments and organizations that helped in the developmental process of the program are known as The Recycling Team. Key members of the resolution are Kneer, College of Public Service Graduate Senator Larry Luscri II, Just Earth Recycling Chair Connie Williams and Presidential Scholars Recycling Chair Megan Fuchs.
The residential recycling program will distribute containers to the same locations that students currently take out their trash. In the residence halls, indoor recycling bins would be placed in the trash rooms. In addition, outdoor recycling bins will be placed near the buildings in order for custodial staff to transfer materials. At Marchetti Towers, Grand Forest and the Village Apartments recycling bins will be placed near the Dumpsters.
The Recycling Team has selected Highland Recycling and Shredding to handle the recycling collection at the University. The company will pick up recycling products once a week at eight locations around campus. The program will cost the University approximately $2,170 per year.
SGA is requesting that the University fund recycling for two reasons, Kneer said.
“First, the University already provides for the waste needs on campus, yet students prefer that this waste be recycled instead. Second, there is a potential for savings in the University trash bill, as a result of less material going to the landfill,” he added.
Kneer does not see a problem with the implementation of the recycling program because the students involved worked closely with Housing and Residence Life and Facilities Services to develop the program so that all of the potential obstacles and problems have already been worked out.
Residential recycling is just the first step in a University-wide recycling program, Kneer said. The Recycling Team plans on re-evaluating the program to see how it could be expanded in the future.
The key to the success of the residential recycling program will be the students’ participation, Kneer said.
