Poor Campus Recycling Habits Fueled by Freshmen Men

by Roxana D’Agostino

             A recent waste audit performed on February 20 by the Environmental Studies class of 2004 reveals that our campus has a below average recycling rate. The class, composed of twelve upperclassmen Environmental Studies majors, has spent this academic year researching solid waste management with the hopes of developing a new waste management system for the University of Richmond campus. Their goal is to “reduce the amount of solid waste on campus going to landfills and encourage more recycling.”

            Armed with a semester’s worth of research and three years of coursework in the field of Environmental Studies, the twelve picked through four dumpsters of trash collected and organized graciously by Al Lane and his staff from University Facilities with the help of their professors, Dr. Chris Stevenson, Dr. David Kitchen and Dr. Mike Harrison. The samples included 24-hours worth of trash and recyclables from Lora Robins, the T.C. Williams School of Law, Gray Court, and the 1400 block of the U.F.A.

According to Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), the commonwealth’s 2002 overall recycling rate was 36.75%. Our campus sample study showed an overall campus recycling rate of 27.95%. In other words, of all the materials that are recyclable on campus – mixed drink containers, mixed paper and cardboard – 27.95% was actually recycled and 72.05% of waste that could have been easily recycled on campus was thrown into trash cans instead.

However, these numbers may be misleading. A closer look at the data reveals that most of the campus is at the average recycling rate or even higher – the University Forest Apartments of block 1400 recycled 45.36% of their recyclable waste, for example. So what is dragging us down into the realm of wastefulness and general disregard for the environment? The young men of Gray Court. Yes, of 128 pounds of recyclable materials collected from Gray Court on the morning of February 20, 2004, only 10 pounds, or 7.81%, were placed into recycling bins.

So how will this class work to change the habits of the students that will populate our university for another three years? Perhaps a subjective look at the lives of freshmen men would be in order. A class member that recently took a walk through the building noticed a lack of sufficient recycling bins in the halls of Gray Court. Only one stairwell has such bins. Maybe recycling is not considered to be worthwhile or even fashionable for the young men. Or the overwhelming number of alcohol containers found in the trash could imply that underage students do not want to risk sorting trash that could get them into trouble with RAs. On a more basic level, do the students know why it is important to recycle?

The senior seminar class is in their final stages of composing their waste management proposal and hopes to find the answers to such questions in an effort to boost environmental awareness on campus. A large part of improving a waste management system at the University of Richmond will include finding incentives for students to waste less and recycle more. If you have any questions or comments for the senior seminar class, please feel free to contact the author by e-mail: roxana.dagostino@richmond.edu.