With a long list of environmental concerns growing due to an increased population and environmentally-destructive habits across the world, even college campuses are making an effort to go green.

Whether it’s by means of recycling bins or specialized waste bins just for cans, campuses all over the U.S. are taking measures to recycle and efficiently dispose of recyclable items.

EC, however, has a very limited means of recycling, with a program only being available to construction projects. That is, all recyclable material that goes into constructing new buildings, such as the new parking structure, are recycled.

But this is as far as EC’s recycling program goes.

While it is a smart environmentally-conscious move, this is a very limited means of recycling as the campus community can take no part in it. True, waste from construction can be more damaging to the earth than paper or cans, but for one thing, this program is unknown to the students and secondly, it does not engage the students in recycling.

It is understandable that there has been insufficient funding throughout the years, especially now that the country is in a recession and there is a budget crunch affecting all colleges. After all, implementing all resources needed for an effective recycling program all around campus will definitely take some serious funding.

This does not mean, however, that the administration and students alike cannot step up and ask for even the simplest of steps to be taken.

There are probably hundreds, if not thousands, of recyclable items that go through this campus that will be wasted by being thrown out in a trash can, only to be taken to a landfill.

Not only that, but it is now known that large quantities of plastic waste is very hurtful to the environment, as it is not biodegradable, and its durability means it can physically harm wildlife.

The least that can be done is put out an experimental few recycling bins in easy-to-find locations around campus in order to encourage environmentally-sound behavior.

There are students all over this campus who try to recycle at home, but unfortunately cannot do so when on campus.

Routine maintenance is not enough to stop the litter from hurting the earth. Ignoring recycling means more people will be unconcerned about the benefits that could come of it.

EC and students should work together to come to a compromise about what to do with the recycling dilemma, which will not only make the campus cleaner, but it will help the earth as a whole.

It may sound like a romantic idea to involve the whole campus in recycling, but a little can go a long way, so it won’t take much for this to catch on and help the campus in return.

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