Ball State University students might soon have a bigger opportunity to show their dedication to the environment.
The Ball State University Student Government Association, along with Students for a Sustainable Campus, is working to pass three recycling legislations that would help Ball State keep up with other universities.
The proposals include hiring a recycling coordinator, adding an extra bin in residence hall trash rooms and providing recycling receptacles at football tailgating locations specifically for glass bottles, plastic bottles and aluminum cans. If the proposals are put into place, Ball State will have comparable recycling programs with universities such as Miami University of Ohio, which saved more than $171,000 in 2005 by recycling.
The recycling coordinator would be a full-time Ball State staff member who would implement programs such as Recyclemania, a national competition, create more publicity for those programs and dedicate more time to making Ball State more environmentally friendly.
The recycling program at Ball State is understaffed, said Shawn Meier, Community and Environmental Affairs Committee chairman of Student Senate and author of the three legislations. Campuses with someone specifically in charge of recycling are seeing positive results, he said.
Ball State's Recycling Committee meets once a month, Mike Planton, associate director for landscape and environmental management and head of recycling efforts at Ball State, said. The committee is comprised of representatives from Facilities Planning and Management, Housing and Residence Life, Dining, Purchasing, Sports Facilities Management and faculty members.
Legislation proposed adding a bin to residence hall trash rooms labeled with a list of acceptable materials so students know exactly which items can be recycled, Meier said. There would be one specifically for glass bottles, plastic bottles and aluminum cans, and the bins would use blue bags instead of clear. Muncie uses the bags in its Blue Bag recycling program and advertises so residents understand the bags are specifically for recyclable materials.
"That's a good idea," sophomore Esther Valladolid said. "Hopefully it's effective and people can actually throw away their cans in the correct bins."
Planton said he thought SGA had a good idea with using blue bags. It doesn't make any difference what color they are, but the blue bags might make recycling receptacles more recognizable, he said.
The third proposed legislation is for Ball State to put recycling bins next to the trash bins at football tailgating locations.
"It's just a wasted opportunity (to recycle)," Meier said.
The University of Missouri at Columbia recycled 19 tons of aluminum, plastic and glass containers at home football games this season, according to the legislation.
The Recycling Committee at Ball State is already trying to reuse as many things as possible. It discusses ways to recycle larger items such as carpet, tires, computers, batteries and coffee grounds and is working on several projects, Planton said.
For example, committee members realized people weren't using the magazine racks, which let students share used magazines. So the members decided Ball State needed a new waste hauler that would enable people to recycle magazines and all types of plastics. Without the new waste hauler, Ball State could only recycle plastics No. 1 and No. 2 and non-glossy paper, cardboard, aluminum and unbroken glass. With the new waste hauler, Ball State can add plastics No. 1 - No. 7 and glossy paper to the list of recyclables.
The committee is also working to replace the cardboard recycling boxes, which cost $1, with green metal containers, which cost $200 and are more recognizable, Planton said.
It's good that they are all being replaced, Meier said. Having different containers confuses students about how to effectively recycle, according to the legislation.
People also weren't recycling because of a lack of publicity, Planton said, so the committee decided to advertise recycling programs and are finalizing a Web site.
"I think people are aware," junior Tyler Knecht said. "They're just lazy."
Junior Matthew Clay said he always tries to recycle and suggested bins with brighter colors that people will notice, he said.
"It's better to start with baby steps and work people up to it," Meier said. "So many people just don't understand what needs to be recycled."
Residence and dining halls are the worst recyclers on campus, with monthly recycling ranging from 2.9 percent to 6.8 percent of the total trash collected during 2005 and 2006, according to the legislation.
Meier said residence and dining halls should account for half of Ball State recycling. Sophomore Kenny Greimann said adding the recycling bins with blue bags to the residence hall trash rooms might help encourage him to recycle.
"I think it'd be a good idea overall, but I think people will use it as an extra trash can when the garbage overflows," he said. "But I think I would recycle."
Last year Ball State had recycling in the Atrium and people would just throw anything in the receptacles, Valladolid said.
Everybody on campus is guilty of putting materials in the wrong bins, Planton said. He applauds people for their recycling efforts so far, he said.
"People need to look at what's in their hands and make a decision," he said.
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