Heading Out

Tomorrow morning a group of 14 students along with myself and Cori and Tildsley from the Peace College Wellness Center, will head to New Orleans for an Alternative Spring Break Trip. While in New Orleans we'll stay at Camp Hope and volunteer with a local food bank and Habitat for Humanity. Many of the girls going are also a part of the Green Team. We will try and keep you updated on all the exciting things we are doing while gone.

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Survey Results Are In!

Click on the image to enlarge.

Should we at a minimum reduce the number of phone books sent to us every year?

1.2 Tons of paper really is a lot to discard annually for such little use.

RecycleMania First Month Results!

Thanks to everyone for such an improvement in our recycling program. Over the first month we have had a reduction in the amount of material we discard (combined trash & recycling), a reduction in trash and an increase in our recycling. It is up to the staff and faculty to keep this trend going while our Green Team is away.

Maintenance and Grounds has accumulated quite a large amount of scrap metal that will be taken to TT&E for recycling. When we add the weight of this material to our total we will have Meredith College eating our dust. Call me with any questions. I cannot reveal everything on this blog. Spies from Meredith are frequent readers of this blog.

Reduce, Reuse & Recycle!

Phone Books

The Green Team was alarmed on Tuesday to see the number of phone books that are delivered to our campus every year.

They are looking for your input on the usage of phone books and yellow pages. Please click on the link below to take a very brief survey.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=OROpau2ISq_2bpO3uOa5cXwA_3d_3d

Do You Know What Goes In Our Landfills?

Have you ever considered what actually is in our public landfills? The attached pie chart provides a list of items and percentages of waste according to the EPA.

I had no idea that packaging, food waste and yard trimmings represent over half of the items we dispose of every day.

Nondurable goods may be defined either as goods that are used up when used once, or that have a lifespan of less than 3 years.

Examples of nondurable goods include cosmetics, cleaning products, fuel, office supplies, paper and paper products, personal products, rubber, plastics, textiles, clothing and footwear.

Durable goods a product which does not quickly wear out or more specifically, it yields services or utility over time rather than being completely used up when used once.

Examples of consumer durable goods are appliances, home furnishings, toys and games, cars, and DVD players.

Green Team Will Take You Off Catalog Lists

This week the Green Team will be collecting catalogues that you receive and would like to be unsubscribed from. We have realized that there are a number of catalogues being sent that no one wants and we would like to fix the root of the problem rather than just recycling them. Boxes will be located around campus and in the mailroom until Friday. To participate, simply place your catalogues in one of the marked boxes and the Green Team will call and unsubscribe you from them before recycling. Please contact Immie Miles or Jessica Baxter with questions.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Standard Mail accounted for about 5.8 million tons, or 2.4 percent, of municipal solid waste (otherwise known as trash or garbage) in 2005. Of this amount, 64 percent was placed in a landfill or incinerated, and 36 percent was recycled.

Municipal Solid Waste in the United States, 2007 Facts and Figures
http://www.epa.gov/osw/nonhaz/municipal/pubs/msw07-rpt.pdf

Alumnae Board Meeting

Thanks so much to the Alumnae Board for the opportunity to share the many accomplishments of the Green Team! I received a very warm welcome. The Board is appreciative of the efforts we are making to reduce, reuse and recycle at Peace College.

WRAL Article Featuring President Bingham

“Our campus community has rallied to finding new ways to innovate and save, with students leading a Green Team to conserve energy and be better stewards of renewable and nonrenewable resources.”

Laura Bingham, President Peace College

From February 17th interview with WRAL
http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/4545778/

Thanks President Bingham! We are fortunate to have a very active, enthusiastic group of vigilant students who recognize the environmental and economic benefits of reducing, reusing and recycling.

Community Stewardship

I understand the addiction to nicotine. Both my parents died of nicotine related illness. My father died at age 47 and my mother at 73. What I do not understand is why the people addicted to nicotine discard their butts on the ground. About 4.5 trillion cigarette butts are littered worldwide each year—making them the most-littered item. The myth that cigarette filters are biodegradable is just that, a myth. Although the filters do eventually decompose (2 to 5 years), they release harmful chemicals that enter the earth’s land and water during the decaying process. There is nothing earth-friendly about the breakdown.

Now that Peace College is a tobacco free campus, our neighbors are complaining of the unsightly trash that is being left behind by those leaving campus for a quick smoke. Trash left behind that includes items such as cigarette butts, Styrofoam food trays, aluminum cans and water bottles. As a highly visible, well respected institution shouldn’t we set the standard for community stewardship?