Florida Atlantic University's first student-run news source.

UNIVERSITY PRESS

Florida Atlantic University's first student-run news source.

UNIVERSITY PRESS

Florida Atlantic University's first student-run news source.

UNIVERSITY PRESS

Going Green Takes Big Bucks

Everyone always pushes the idea of “going green,” but as a student I think the idea is easier said than done. The “going green” process can start with recycling but really becomes an issue of how to help the environment without spending a lot of money. After thinking about this, I realized that what students can do is limited, and FAU isn’t really helping us.

That was my main goal in creating a special “green” issue of the UP: to explain what going green is and how FAU is helping the students.

Formerly a commuter student, I used to arrive an hour before class to drive aimlessly around both parking garages and stalk departing students — just to find a parking spot. This directionless driving wasted the fuel that my Nissan Xterra likes to bountifully consume and in turn put harmful emissions in the air.

I suppose FAU can’t help that problem. It’s not their fault I can’t afford a hybrid car. But they can change the Styrofoam that is used in the cafeteria.

Think about how many students take their cafeteria meals to go. This process involves a Styrofoam box, a Styrofoam cup and plastic utensils, none of which are biodegradable.

That means that if only 20 students take their meals to go each day, it amounts to 280 boxes and cups per week, 8,680 per month and 102,200 items per year — none of which can be recycled. It’s no wonder our landfills are so tall.

Not to mention recycling in on-campus housing is subpar. College students are typically not the most environmentally conscientious group of people, but housing makes the recycling process more difficult for those who do want to recycle.

As a resident of the University Village Apartments, I am continuously amazed that any recycling efforts focus on the dorms. To make matters more frustrating, the recycling bins provided in my building are not labeled. There are three blue bins, but only one tells me what is supposed to go in it. Generally, this problem leads me to simply trash the items that I would have recycled, thus furthering the decomposition of Earth.

After considering all these situations, I began to wonder, “How hard is it for students to go green?” It turns out that going green takes a lot of green from your wallet and that trying to save the environment isn’t always easy.

College students have always faced money problems: how to get money, how to keep it and where to spend it. This cash flow problem doesn’t necessarily bode well for eco-friendly efforts.

These are serious problems that should be addressed. Going green is not just a fashion statement or a fad: it’s a process that should be adhered to so our future families can enjoy the Earth the same way we have.

Becoming eco-friendly is as hard and time-consuming as you imagine. But it can start easily with just recycling the water bottles we use each day. Such a small task can reduce the future height of our landfills and keep harmful emissions out of the air. It can be that simple.

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