As environmental sustainability has become an international concern in recent years, the Boston University community is still in the process of establishing systems for recycling, finding alternative means of energy and waste management and creating energy-conservation programs.
This semester, students, professors and administrators began searching for ways to make the university more environmentally aware.
"It's really been proven this semester that there is a good level of support for sustainability," said Assistant Provost Michael Field. "The issue has moved forward because the administration has started talking about it."
The petition drafted earlier this semester by three BU professors challenged the administration and the Strategic Planning Task Force to acknowledge environmental sustainability.
Drafted by geography and environment department chairman Mark Friedl, biology professor Thomas Kunz and earth sciences professor Richard Murray, the open letter, which included an online petition, raised awareness with its more than 1,000 student signatures, Field said.
The administration and faculty have had several meetings to discuss strategic planning and environmental sustainability, Murray said, but no resolutions have been drafted yet. Although they are unsure to what extent environmental policies will change, Murray said he looks forward to continuing discussions during the summer.
"It's one of many very important things the administration is considering," he said. "It is now definitely part of the conversation, and that is really good."
The administration recently launched a BU Green website to inform students about environmental improvement updates, as well as events to promote a "green campus," including energy conservation and waste management.
Citing efforts such as the installation of energy-efficient lighting systems and water-conservation devices, BU estimates it has saved more than $3 million in the 2006 fiscal year in electricity, fuel oil and water and sewer costs, according to the website. However, the university cannot measure its energy consumption because BU does not have enough energy meters, Field acknowledged.
The administration has not approved any of the measures proposed throughout the semester by student groups and professors to increase sustainability. Problems with these proposals were mostly financial, practical or logistical obstacles, community members said.
SED Green, a group of professors working toward making some buildings more environmentally friendly, proposed a wind turbine and solar panels be installed on the roof of the School of Education building. These would be used to draw energy, but Field said the SED roof has not yet been examined, so he is unsure if the systems could work.
SED professor Douglas Zook said facilities maintenance workers have had a couple months to test the roof's structural integrity, but they have not yet done so.
If the roof is found to be capable of supporting the systems, the wind turbines and solar panels could be installed during the summer, Field said.
If the systems are eventually installed on SED's roof and the solar panel system is useful, similar systems could later be installed on other campus buildings, Field said.
In other efforts to improve sustainability awareness, the Waste Reduction Team, a newly developed student-led environmental group, has been working with deans throughout the semester to propose an upgrade to recycling facilities.
Waste Reduction Team member Rebecca Haskell said the group's proposal will be reviewed by administrators and deans soon to determine whether the additional recycling locations would comply with fire-safety procedures.
"There is no one formally in charge of all aspects of recycling," the SED sophomore said in an email. "This causes difficulty, because it is no one's priority to see that recycling gets implemented, and therefore, improving recycling conditions does not get addressed in a timely fashion."
Because there is no one person or office officially regulating recycling, Haskell said deans are concerned the recycling bins may not be properly emptied, which could lead to sanitation problems in their colleges.
Custodians are not required to empty recycling bins, Haskell said. While some student groups have volunteered to empty the bins, some could argue students would be unreliable, Haskell said.
Deans have also said they are worried the recycling bins would damage the aesthetic value of their buildings if installed, she said.
"While they may stick out like a sore thumb, that is exactly what they are supposed to do, so people will know to use them," Haskell said.
While groups have been working together to try to change policies, geography and environment department professor Nathan Phillips has taken a more individual approach to energy conservation by installing a bicycle in his office that powers the room when he pedals. Many environmental groups' proposals would help BU reduce energy consumption, which would therefore save money, Phillips said.
"If a concern for saving money is something that can push this forward, that's absolutely great," he said.
Environmental Student Organization Treasurer Michaela Haynes said BU does not look at energy conservation from an environmental standpoint.
"They look at it from an economic standpoint," the College of Arts and Sciences sophomore said. "There are things being done here, but they're not from the environmental standpoint."
ESO recently proposed an optional $10 fee on students' tuition that would generate funds to purchase renewable energy credits from clean-energy industries, said ESO President Vicki Barbato, a School of Education senior, in an April 10 Daily Free Press article.
Field, who works with many of the environmental groups, said the Green Fee proposal has not been formally presented to the administration.
"Sometimes, with groups, you have to jump through a lot of hoops to get things done, and [Field] lets us know what hoops to jump through," said BU Green recycling coordinator Gitte Venicx, a CAS senior.
If approved, the fee would help subsidize the cost of renewable-energy options that ultimately aim to decrease BU's environmental impact, Haynes said.
ESO recently began circling a petition around campus to gather signatures from community members in favor of the optional fee. The petition has been signed by 3,500 students in less than a week, Haynes said.
Staff reporters Joseph Laflamme, Hannah McBride and Andrea Rodi contributed reporting for this article.
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