In recent years, there has been a lot of buzz about "going green." People hear about things they can do, such as recycling aluminum cans, walking to work instead of driving, not supporting corporations that are the worst environmental offenders and a laundry list of other things the average citizen can do to make the world a better place.
Ohio State is reaching out to help make the campus community greener.
The university has created a task force within the Department of Facilities Operations and Development dedicated to making our campus more eco-friendly. According to its Web site, the university has taken steps across campus to ensure that its practices are as environmentally sustainable as possible.
One example of the university's efforts is a switch from regular diesel fuel to a 20 percent biodiesel blend in all CABS buses. Biodiesel is a renewable fuel normally made from soybeans that burns cleaner and is less damaging to the ozone.
The university has also revamped its recycling program making it more accessible to students, staff, faculty and visitors to campus on game days. Instead of separate bins for each type of recyclable item, which often confused users in the past, it has been streamlined into an all-in-one program where all recyclable materials go into the same bin.
"The university president's cabinet has adopted a waste reduction goal for the university," Tina Redman, sustainability coordinator for the Department of Facilities Operations and Development said in an e-mail. "That goal is to reduce university waste going to landfills for disposal by 30 percent by the year 2010."
So far, more than 61 tons of trash have been diverted from landfills from the nine buildings where the program has been implemented, according to the Web site.
"To achieve the waste reduction goal, the university must make recycling collection convenient, cost-effective and reliable," Redman said.
In order to do this, the university intends to make recycling more cost effective and simpler for people on campus.
In addition to efforts within the university's Department of Facilities Operations and Development, OSU has reached out to student organizations such as Students For a Sustainable Campus. The organization promotes "sustainable initiatives focused on energy and the environment," according to its Web site.
Students For a Sustainable Campus held its yearly Scarlet, Gray and Green fair on the South Oval in October, in which a number of local groups participated and displayed their efforts to help the environment not only at Ohio State, but across the state of Ohio and the country.
Another main initiative of the group has been its CFL Light Bulb Raids, Hudson McFann, co-president of the organization, said in an e-mail.
"On these raids, SSC goes into dorms and exchanges free energy-efficient light bulbs for students' old incandescent bulbs," McFann said.
McFann said OSU is taking adequate steps to move towards sustainability.
"Ohio State is on the verge of great change. The College Sustainability Report Card 2008 graded Ohio State at a C+, but recognized improvement from last year," McFann said. "I'm optimistic that students will see major steps from the university in the near future. SSC recognizes the university's desire to operate in a more sustainable manner."
Another group OSU has partnered with is Free the Planet OSU, a student group dedicated to environmental justice in all sectors of society. Free the Planet OSU is currently in the midst of its "OSU Paper Campaign." The organization is pressuring the university to "secure environmentally and socially conscious buying practices" for paper purchasing university-wide, according to its Web site.
Diana Link can be reached at link.95@osu.edu.
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