Want to save the environment? Students can take step toward that initiative right from within their residence halls through Troy University’s recycling program.
Started by the student services and the housing office, the project stands as a means to “get students engaged in a meaningful project that all residences could participate in,” said Herbert Reeves, dean of student services.
Reeves is in charge of managing the recycling project in the residence halls and supervises the workers who manage the recycling.
“(The recycling project) has raised awareness of recycling and the importance of it,” he said. “We have increased the number of people participating in the program.”
The recycling project includes paper, plastic, aluminum and cardboard recyclables. Students can obtain rolls of green recycling bags from the resident assistants (RAs) in their buildings, and the bags are picked up once a week from outside each room.
Another purpose for the project is “to reduce the amount of trash being sent to the landfill from the campus,” according to Reeves.
After being picked up, the materials are sorted by students at the physical plant and then placed in containers to be sent to the recycling plant. Anyone who wishes to volunteer at the physical plant can contact the student services office.
To become more involved in the recycling project, students can talk to their RAs about the pickup days for their dorms. The bags must be outside by 9 a.m. on the days that they are to be picked up.
“We need more participation from resident students in the program,” Reeves said. Students can become more involved by “simply recycling in their rooms.”
RAs are encouraging residents to participate in this project, as it is part of the programming goals for each of the residence halls, according to Reeves.
“The Newman Center recycles more than any of the other residences,” he said.
Becky Albritton, a junior elementary education major and an RA in the Newman Center from Prattville, said: “I think the project has been effective, at least in the Newman Center. It makes us so happy to walk into the hallways on Wednesday mornings (pickup day) and see green recycling bags outside of the majority of the rooms.
“I think it will grow in the future as more and more people hear about it and want to get involved,” she said. “It’s already growing since last year.”
Students are being encouraged to participate and to fill the halls with recycling bags and to reduce waste. Also, it will benefit students by minimizing the amount of trash they have to carry to the dumpsters.
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