 "Photo: Zautke, Lindsay")
Beginning Jan. 28, USD students and faculty will compete against 201 colleges and universities throughout the United States in RecycleMania 2007.
RecycleMania is a 10-week competition among campuses where students and faculty participate in contests to see which college or university can collect the least amount of trash per capita, the largest amount of recyclables per capita, the largest amount of total recyclables or have the highest recycling rate.
Senior Liz Naber received a $1,000 grant to use toward campus and community collaboration, and she chose to use the money to be in RecycleMania. Most of the money from the grant was used to buy recycling receptacles.
During the next two weeks, three receptacles will be placed on each floor of the residence halls. There will be receptacles for plastic, paper and aluminum. Cardboard will also be recycled.
Most departments on campus already use the three bag paper recycling system, but Naber said she would like to see more products recycled.
"There is recycling on campus, it's just maybe not as accessible to students as we'd like it to be," Naber said.
Junior Adam Barkl, a Community Advisor in Olson Hall, started a recycling program on his floor at the beginning of the fall semester. Residents on his floor recycle aluminum, plastic bottles, paper and cardboard.
"I try to recycle quite often. I think it's really important, and I don't think it's something people do enough of," Barkl said.
Barkl said the recycling program on his floor has been successful because most students contribute.
"I think quite a few people participate because our bins, especially the plastic one, fill up over the course of about two days," Barkl said.
Naber said students from Students Advising Grassroots Environmentalism (SAGE) and Into the Streets will be helping with the promotion of RecycleMania. She said the focus of the competition will revolve around the residence halls because they generate nearly 30 to 70 percent of campus trash.
Sophomore Carrie Brooks is the recycling chair for SAGE. She said SAGE plans to promote RecycleMania by putting posters throughout the North Complex and possibly making T-shirts.
In addition to the campus recycling program, Naber is developing ways to promote recycling in the community. Although no details have been finalized, Naber plans to encourage recycling throughout Vermillion.
"We want to promote the recycling receptacles at Jones' Food Center and give away cloth bags so people can use those for their groceries instead of always using plastic or paper," Naber said.
Each school participating in RecycleMania is required to report their measurements on a weekly basis. The Missouri River Recycling Center has volunteered to weigh the recyclables for USD.
Naber said she hopes one student from each floor will volunteer to take the recyclables to the main floor in each residence hall once a week. From there, Facilities Management will take the products to the Missouri River Recycling Center.
Naber said faculty and students who live off campus can participate in RecycleMania by taking their recyclables to the Missouri River Recycling Center and mentioning they are affiliated with USD.
Brooks encourages people living off-campus to participate because it will add to USD's collection and increase the chance of winning.
"Since Vermillion doesn't have curbside recycling, it would be beneficial if they were willing to take their recyclables to the Missouri River Recycling Center," Brooks said.
Though trophies and certificates are awarded to winning schools, Naber and Brooks believe the competition is more about the reputation of being one of the most environmentally conscious campuses throughout the United States.
"I think it's cool because there are a lot of prestigious universities participating, and USD is definitely capable of competing against them," Naber said.
Brooks said she students get involved because they care about the environment.
"Most of the people participating in this really just care about the Earth so they also want their school to care," Brooks said. "It would be kind of cool if little South Dakota was known for caring for the future."
After the competition, bins will remain on the floors. Naber will graduate this year but said she wants RecycleMania to become an annual USD event.
"The more we recycle this year and the better we do in the competition will show that USD really does care about recycling and that more funds should be appropriated because it's something students value," Naber said.
Reach reporter Allison Struck at Allison.N.Struck@usd.edu.
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