3 minute read

Thinking Ecologically

from UP Summer 2018 Issue

from UP Summer 2018 Issue, page 32

Color Block

Rummaging through piles and piles of old pizza boxes, banana peels and rotting food in the dumpster outside of Brandon Hall, student members of Eco-Reps performed one of their infamous trash audits. Eco-Reps, a club on campus dedicated to keeping Miami University green, works directly with residence halls to promote sustainability. After this specific audit, the reps found that of the materials thrown away in trash containers, almost 57 percent could have been recycled. Fifty-seven percent of materials could have been easily reused in the future had they simply been tossed into the blue container instead.

I like to think that I do an okay job being “green,” but if we’re being honest, it’s all about convenience. If there’s not a recycling option readily available, I’ll throw away my plastic water bottle without a bit of remorse. This is how most of us operate, and it’s a mindset that organizations like Eco-Reps are actively fighting. But we all have to help. In the grand scheme of things, it takes minimal effort to figure out ways to live sustainable lives and ultimately help ourselves and generations to come.

In 2013, Miami made the switch from multi-stream recycling to single-stream, meaning that instead of students separating their recyclables into different containers themselves, they put them all in the same bin. These materials are then sent to Rumpke, Miami’s contractor, who separate the garbage themselves. Cody Powell, vice president of facilities planning and operations at Miami, believes that this has made somewhat of a difference. “We got a lot of feedback from the campus community at that time that believed that was a very positive move.” Powell still thinks that the amount of items thrown away that could be recycled is “fairly disturbing.”

However, Miami doesn’t always make it easy for us to recycle. Can you remember the last time you saw a blue recycling bin in Armstrong? Sarah Hale is vice president of communications for Green Oxford, a club that hopes to improve Miami’s environmental policies and inform the student body.

“Miami makes an effort, but if the choice is between recycling and aesthetic, they will always choose aesthetic,” Hale said. “For example, there are different places on campus where there are more decorative trash cans and they won’t put out a recycling bin just because it doesn’t look as good. And I mean, I’ll go out of my way to find a place to recycle, but the average student won’t.”

“Once, we tried to put up stickers on towel dispensers reminding students to remember the effects of how many towels they use,” Hale continued, “but Miami didn’t let us hang them because they didn’t look good enough.” Educating people on how to effectively work within the system is essential in changing the complacency that lives within Oxford. While investigating recycling in Oxford, I was shocked by some of my research—and disappointed that I was so out of the loop.

All of those 32-ounce trashcan cups you see on the floor at the end of the night at Brick Street? Not recyclable. Usually, cups with rims that are bigger than the bottom can’t be recycled—especially if they’re layered with residue from the sugary drinks that fill them. And even then, Rumpke doesn’t recycle number five plastic, which includes all clear plastic cups.

Additionally, Starbucks cups proudly boast that they are made with “10 percent post-consumer recycled fiber”, but they cannot actually be recycled due to the waxy coating on the inside that keeps them warm. Starbucks may promote the use of reusable cups, but the amount of waste that must come out of their stores in a single day is baffling.

Seeing an increase in recycled materials at Miami is a great first step. But ultimately, the goal is to actually see a decrease in recycled materials, with the hopes that we are living more sustainable lives. Yes, it would be great if we recycled our water bottles, but it would be much better if we drank from reusable water bottles—thus eliminating the need for trash bins or recycling bins.

The National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 committed the United States to sustainability so we could “create and maintain conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony, that permit fulfilling the social, economic and other requirements of present and future generations.” I want my future kids to play in a backyard that is not bogged down by excessive pollution. I want them to know what rainforests are—and know that they still exist. I want them to live in a world where their health is valued and protected.

And that starts with us. Take the extra minute out of your day to find a recycling bin, or find a cute S’well water bottle and refill it instead of buying plastic over and over again. Ride your bike instead of driving one day a week. Take the bus. The solution to saving our planet is right in front of us—we just have to act on it.