Dorm lots get trashy
Facilities Services say litter on campus is a problem
Ben Kleppinger
Issue date: 11/29/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
|
Bottles, cans and other trash being tossed out the windows of high-rise residence halls are only a few litter problems at Eastern, said Facilities Services Associate Director David Williams.
Residence halls and the parking lots associated with them are the biggest source of litter on Eastern's campus, Williams said.
Williams said Keene Hall is one of the worst locations for litter on campus. Facilities Services employees pick up litter around Keene Hall on Saturday mornings when most students are asleep to avoid being hit by any trash coming out the windows of the building, he said.
"They will throw cans of corn out the window and stuff that will kill you," Williams said.
Besides litter around residence halls, Williams said cigarette butts are another major litter concern on campus.
"When we pushed the smokers outside, we pushed the litter problem outside," Williams said.
Williams said Facilities Services has launched several campaigns to encourage smokers to properly dispose of their butts. But despite the campaigns, cigarettes continue to litter the campus, Williams said.
"For the most part smokers, when they're outside, the whole world's their ash tray," Williams said.
But the efforts to keep the campus clean continue despite limited success, Williams said.
"As long as we're in Kentucky, in a tobacco state, we're going to have smokers and that's going to be an issue we fight just like any other litter," Williams said.
Williams said the amount of litter on campus also increases on sunny days, when the weather is nice.
"You can tell how the weather has been by…looking around campus," he said. "If it's pretty and warm, there's more litter."
Williams said litter probably accounts for less than 10 percent of the waste on Eastern's campus, but is much more expensive and time consuming to clean up. Five years ago it cost Eastern $5,000 every month to clean up the litter on campus, he said.
Williams said now it could be as much as $6,000 a month. Williams said it takes two minutes for Facilities Services employees to dispose of 150 pounds of waste from trashcans. It would take a crew of workers an entire day to pick up the same amount of litter, he said.
Facilities Services is planning to add more trash and recycling bins around campus in order to reduce litter, Williams said.
Williams said Facilities Services tries to get the message out not to litter, but the message isn't a one-time deal.
"We think, 'we've told them once. Adults should understand this.' But I think it's just something you have to keep hammering on," he said.
Williams said Facilities Services has struggled getting the message to the 2,000 new freshmen Eastern sees every fall, as well as new faculty and staff members. "It's a message that has to be repeated all the time and we haven't done a good job…keeping that out there," he said.
