Saving Earth one cup at a time

When Undergraduate Student Government Vice President Ed Kilpela looks around the USG Senate table every Tuesday night, he's frustrated to see the same thing week after week.

"What I would like to see is the HUB to stop selling cups to students," Kilpela said. "This won't happen by April -- that's a pipe dream. By April, I hope to open up the line of communication with the University."

Kilpela is not alone in his crusade against Styrofoam. Eco-Action, the environmental student organization at the University, began discouraging the use of Styrofoam just as it was brought back to the HUB in Fall Semester 1995, Eco-Action Co-director Autumn Hanna said. Now, the organization is trying to encourage the HUB and other on-campus eateries to increase the price of Styrofoam to reflect its cost.

"Styrofoam . . . (affects) your health and the environment, it's more costly," Hanna said.

If the price of Styrofoam cups are raised, along with students' awareness, students could refill their reusable mugs and save money at the same time, Hanna said.

"In the end, it saves everyone money, the school spends less because it doesn't have to buy cups and the kids only have to buy (plastic) cups," Kilpela said.

While environment and economy is at the forefront of everyone's mind, Assistant Director of Food Services David Gingher is not as optimistic about Kipela's plan to try to eliminate cups on campus.

"(Having everyone carry cups) would be wonderful, but in reality it's not going to happen," Gingher said. "This is the same as going to McDonald's, it's a fast food restaurant."

However, Food Services is already helping with part of Eco-Action and Kilpela's goal. It will randomly distribute 100 mugs in the HUB eateries each day of next week.

The ultimate goal is still a disposable-free campus -- an idea that is not unique to college campuses, Kilpela said. At James Madison University, EARTH, an environmental group, has been working for the last five years to eliminate disposables on campus, said Troy Farmer, president of EARTH. Only two eateries on campus are still using disposable cups. The group gives students a shower hook when they buy their mug to attach it to their backpacks, Farmer said.

Kilpela would like the sight of cups hanging from students' backpacks to become commonplace at the University, despite the anticipated backlash from students.

"If you ask anyone on the street, do you want to help the environment, they will say 'yes'," he said. "If students hate me for this, their kids will love me."

Kilpela is already encouraging Senate to clean up its act with an incentive.

"If everyone in Senate was to buy a cup and use it, I would shave my beard," Kilpela said.