Making a Difference with Trash

With seventy vending machines strategically scattered across the BYU campus, the Cougar Eat containing a plethora of bottled beverage choices, and of course having access to dirt cheap pallets of bottled water found at the nearest Wal-Mart, students at BYU generally do not have any difficulty finding, locating, and consuming a most likely delicious bottled drink of their choice. One might find this a positive thing. After all, we are supposed to keep hydrated. The problem with this picture, however, is that once that student is done drinking, the only place for the person to dispose of the bottle is in the trash. BYU needs to establish a recycling program that in addition to recycling paper, cardboard, and aluminum cans, also recycles plastic bottles. If effectively started, by bringing about awareness through advertising, providing easily accessible recycle bins, BYU can help benefit the environment, be an example to the community, as well as help introduce recycling to students so that they can make it a personal habit to continue even after graduating.

Why exactly is recycling so important? In our busy schedules we often wonder if our efforts can really make a difference. However small our own personal attempts of recycling are, on a large scale we see that recycling absolutely makes a difference. Picture an overflowing landfill. These produce and release harmful chemicals and greenhouse gasses. When we recycle, we reduce the content found in those landfills and can thus reduce the amount of pollution. Also, by recycling we reduce the amount of raw materials needed to produce goods. This means we can preserve rainforests as well as reduce deforestation. Recycling also reduces the use of natural resources because recycling requires much less energy when producing materials. Moreover, Recycling is beneficial to the economy because it is less expensive to produce materials from recyclables and not raw materials. With a combined effort, we can obtain these benefits through recycling.

BYU can do its part to help the environment by establishing a more involved recycling program. With its current recycling program, BYU has recycle bins located in less than two places on average per building. Although this is a good start, there is room for improvement. One problem is that most students are not aware of where these recycle bins are located. With a better program, BYU could offer recycle bins on every floor of each building, and twice or more for highly congested or large buildings like the Wilkinson Center. With these added recycle bins, students will see and know where the recycle bins are located and be more likely to recycle. Students will not have to make a special trip to a recycle bin when they are located on every floor. BYU currently recycles paper, cardboard, aluminum cans, and plastic bottles. However, recycling bins for plastic bottles are not found with every location of recycle bins. With a new recycling program, recycle bins for plastic bottles could be found at every location. This will make it so much easier for students wanting to recycle plastic bottles but who could never find them.

To receive the most benefits from a recycling program, students would be involved and participate. Together as a community, we can make the difference. To ensure the most participation, we should bring awareness about the new program. Advertising with recycling posters across campus is one way to bring about awareness. With bulletin boards in every building that students pass, low-cost posters advocating recycling could be easily distributed. An article in the Daily Universe could also bring knowledge about recycling to the many students who read it. Bringing a knowledge and awareness of recycling to the BYU campus will help remind students to recycle and can help introduce the idea of recycling to students who have no strong prior knowledge of it.

There would be many long lasting positive effects from enlisting a better recycling program on the BYU campus. One such effect would be the environmental benefits from recycling. With how large the BYU campus is and considering the many number of students, the items recycled would be a substantial amount. With the items recycled, BYU could do its part to help the environment. Also, BYU would be an example to other Universities and to Utah in general. In time, other Universities and communities in Utah could see the example set by BYU and hopefully espouse for a similar program. Perhaps most importantly would be the effect it would have on the individual student. If students were introduced to a successful recycling program, they would learn the benefits of recycling and be in a better habit of recycling. Students of BYU could incorporate recycling into their daily lives and continue to recycle even after graduating, and continue to make a difference in the world.

Although such a program would have financial costs, from purchasing recycle bins, and distributing posters, the benefits would be worthwhile. The benefits of this recycling program are not that far out of reach and with some effort, BYU can accomplish this goal. BYU could do its part to help the environment, be an example to others, as well as help its own students become habituated with recycling so that they can continue to recycle and make a difference.