Contests aim to conserve resources

It's a typical Wednesday night. A sophomore boy, having just printed tomorrow's lecture slides at the library, swings by the dining hall and grabs two bottles of water, a slice of pizza to go, and a side of fries. After cursing at the fact that he accidentally printed out the wrong set of slides, he walks into his room in Walsh Hall to find all the lights on, the television blaring, and a laptop charging on the couch. But no one is home.

In a fit of frustration with himself, he tosses the unneeded slides in the trash can, by-passes the light switch for the common room, and heads into his bedroom where he proceeds to eat his dinner. He throws away the bottles and to-go containers in the trash can under his desk. Total damage: 40 pieces of paper, several ounces of plastic, and who knows how many kilowatt- hours of electricity - all of which could have been avoided.

Changing lifestyles like this is exactly the target of two new initiatives being undertaken by Boston College's Ecopledge organization, a student group dedicated to promoting energy and environmental conservation and awareness. With two contests taking place this semester, Ecopledge hopes to instill in students a sense of commitment to living cleaner and greener at BC and in life afterward.

The Better-Off Contest is a University-wide competition aimed at reducing energy usage overall. The contest, which was limited to Newton Campus last year, now pits Upper, Lower, and Newton against each other in an effort to see who can conserve the most.

During the six-week long preliminary round, residence halls within each area will have their energy outputs monitored by Facilities Management. New devices installed by Facilities will make keeping track of energy output easier. The residence halls from each area that have the greatest percent decrease in energy usage from last year will then compete against each other in a two-week final round. The residents in the winning residence hall will then receive prizes compliments of Ecopledge, Residential Life, and Facilities, explained Phil Pietrangelo, Ecopledge member and A&S '09.

"We hope that the prizes will offer students an incentive to conserve energy and participate," said Pietrangelo, "but of course conserving energy should be an incentive itself."

Because each residence hall is configured differently, as some have kitchens, individually-operated heaters, or common rooms, the total energy usage will vary considerably between buildings. Pietrangelo said Ecopledge is taking this into account when determining contest rankings.

"It's hard to accurately judge who does the best," he said. "Last year, for example, when the contest was on Newton, we compared energy used in November and December to energy used in February and March. Heating usage obviously changed between those months, so it's never 100 percent accurate, but it's close enough." Hardey-Cushing won last year's contest, cutting about $25,000 worth of energy from one time period to the other.

"If students make a concerned effort like turning off appliances when they are not in use, it makes a significant difference," said Pietrangelo.

"We are looking to create pledges that students who are committed to the contest can hang on their doors," said Katherine Walsh, Ecopledge member and A&S '08. "Hopefully people will also get into this contest and see that on an individual level, they can make a difference."

Besides lowering emissions into the environment and conserving energy, Walsh said lowering energy costs for BC could put more money back into student life funds. "We could also put the money saved into more energy conservation and sustainability efforts," she said.

Recyclemania, Ecopledge's other conservation initiative, is a nationwide program that involves 201 colleges. BC participated last year when only 92 schools competed and placed 33rd, with a recycling rate of 17.18 percent. The competition occurs in several areas: overall total recycling, per capita recycling, waste minimization, and per capita paper, bottles and cans, and cardboard.

The contest runs through April, with progress being charted each week. All material recycled by BC is weighed, and results are posted online at www.recyclemania.org.

In the first week of the competition, BC recycled at a rate of 18.87 percent, which converts to 2.55 pounds of recyclable materials per person. Last year's winner, Cal State San Marcos, recycled at a rate of 52.57 percent, or 5.86 pounds per person.

Pietrangelo said Ecopledge's goal is for BC to place in the top 20 schools. By remembering to place recyclables in the appropriate recycling receptacles, this goal can be attained. Each residence hall and dining hall has containers dedicated to recycling, and students should take advantage of the recycling services offered, said Pietrangelo.

"You can also cut back on trash, since the contest measures pounds of recycling against pounds of trash," said Pietrangelo. "Ask for a plate in the dining hall instead of a to-go container, for example."

Besides these two initiatives, Ecopledge is also looking to create a student-faculty coalition to further commit the student body to conservation and sustainability efforts. "It will become a permanent board on campus," said Pietrangelo. The group will not be affiliated with the Undergraduate Government of Boston College (UGBC).

Walsh also said Ecopledge is hoping BC will hire a permanent staff dedicated to sustainability, energy, and green issues. She explained that Harvard University, with its Green Campus Initiative, has hired a full-time "sustainability professional" whose focus is to develop sustainability measures for the campus that improve energy and economic efficiency.

In the wake of BC's receiving a C-minus grade on its college sustainability report card, Ecopledge members hope these efforts can put BC on par with neighboring schools, like Harvard and Tufts, which both received A-minuses. "BC does not get C-minuses on anything," said Pietrangelo. "We want to tap into BC's competitive nature."