On Saturday junior, SMU student Jaimie Siegle will walk down the boulevard barefoot, enjoying the music of local bands, and saving the environment.
Siegle is the environmental chair of Students for a Better Society and its “Barefoot on the Boulevard” event is one of the Earth Day events on campus this week promoting environmental awareness.
The event, Siegle says, is “celebrating how much the Earth has given us.”,
“We have done so much bad. Earth Day is a way to remind us what we should do, sort of like new years resolutions. We need to recycle more and drive cars less and respect the planet more.”
At the event, students can listen to local bands (shoes optional) while learning about ways to help the environment. Siegle said they will distribute 500 eco-friendly light bulbs to address, what she views as, a very large environmental issue.
“The best way that people can collaboratively make a difference is to turn off the lights and use less electricity,” she said.
Bonnie Madely, president of the Environmental Society on campus will host an Earth Day 2009 event at the flagpole.
At the event, students will see a demonstration of how to recycle paper as well as an educational game of “environmental jeopardy.”
Eco-friendly light bulbs as well as low flow shower heads will be distributed to students in an attempt push the issue.
“I want to see students gain an awareness that it is Earth Day and what that means,” Madely said. “And most of all enjoy the beautiful day and keep the environment on your mind.”
An easy way to be environmentally friendly around campus, according to Madely, is to recycle on campus. As she said, the bins are right next to the trash cans. Also, a major issue is electricity usage. Turning off the lights and not using excess electricity can go a long way, she said.
Michael Paul, executive director of facilities management and sustainability on campus said SMU has undertaken many sustainability initiatives in the last year.
He said the campus participated in “Recyclemania” for the first time and was able to recycle 260 tons of waste during a 10-week test period.
The green movement has made its way into men’s restrooms according to Paul, with the installation of waterless urinals throughout the campus. The urinals do not require flushing and save over 60,000 gallons of water per year in high traffic areas according to the manufacturer.
Paul also said that the university secured a contract with a local biomass powerplant in February. The agreement lasts 8 years and will supply the university with 3.2 megawatts of electricity at a time, approximately 25 percent of power usage during peak times.
The university is continuing its construction of “green” buildings on campus. The Caruth engineering building, currently under construction, is slated to have a “gold” rating according to Paul. The rating is a measurement of the number of “green components” the building has. One interesting feature of the new Caruth building is the rainwater collection mechanism, which will allow for 60 percent of rainwater that falls on the building to be recycled to the central plant.
Paul also said the new building in the theology quad is slated to have a “certified” rating, two below gold.
“The university is aware of the environment and we are trying to continue to do our part to help,” Paul said.
