It's not easy being green at Douglas College

Douglas College’s mission statement says, “At Douglas College, we respond to diverse community needs in a rapidly changing society.” And the college may have succeeded in some areas, like welcoming multiculturalism and providing a safe environment for students. But one thing left out of our college’s core values has been the natural environment. While the College has made a small visual effort to appear enviro-friendly (for example, by placing bottle recycle bins sporadically around the campuses) what happens behind the scenes challenges the green in the Douglas College logo.
On both the New West and David Lam Campuses, there are small changes each department can make to lessen the current dinosaur-sized carbon footprint Douglas College is leaving on the environment.
For example, expanded polystyrene (Styrofoam) is used for take-out containers in the cafeteria. This material is generally bad for the environment: it takes a long time to decompose, it’s hard to recycle, and it’s actually banned as a packaging product in over 20 cities across North America—in 1990 polystyrene foam packaging was even banned at McDonald’s. Fernanda Santos, a manager of the Facilities Services Department, said although there are a number of cafeteria initiatives being looked at right now, there are no concrete plans for change—mostly due to cost.
Douglas has fallen behind when it comes to greener campuses. The University of Victoria has a system to use treated waste water in toilets, a compost program for leftover food, and a neon-green sticker on every light switch that reminds students to turn off the lights when leaving the room; Douglas College uses clean water in the toilets, has no compost program, and keeps lights on 24/7.
Recycling is important in all areas of a building, including water facilities, according to Peter Endisch, member of global warming awareness group Boiling Point Action Network (BPAN). “Water from kitchens, showers, etc, can be used for such things as flushing toilets,” he said. “The cost of the system should be easily recouped within a few years.”
“Compost—there’s no reason not to. Compost can be then used in the community gardens. Remember, there’s no such thing in nature as ‘waste’. Waste is a word invented by humans. Let’s try to at least put back into nature what we can, and avoid filling landfills with such nutrients-rich materials as compost. The GVRD is facing real issues because landfills are near capacity. It is only a question of time before institutions such as Douglas College are asked to start recycling aggressively and composting.”
Other ways Endisch suggested the College could ease its carbon output included introducing campus-wide zero-idling policies, installing energy efficient light bulbs, and expanding garden areas on the campuses.
Susan Witter, President of Douglas College, sent out an “Eco Challenge” email to all students on March 9. The email announced Witter would be chairing an Environmental Sustainability Task Force (ESTF) made up of students, staff, and administrators, who have “considered short-term priorities for raising awareness of the environmental initiatives already part of our culture, as well as expansions of these initiatives.”
Gerry Pinel, founder and president of BPAN, said a “Round Table Action Group” is the most effective way of creating changes from within. “The first task of the group should be to call for an environmental audit (carbon footprint) of the campus; a baseline is required to measure changes against. Then the real work would begin.” Some staff are already trying to turn their departments around. The Printshop recycles all of its paper trimmings and off cuts, and uses recycled paper for jobs whenever possible. It also encourages use of their online ordering system for print requests, instead of hard copy.
The Douglas Students’ Union has recently established an Environmental Action Team (EAT). EAT’s objectives are to implement change; gain knowledge via awareness campaigns and peers; collaborate with the College’s green teams, faculty, staff, and administration; and keep in contact with external coalition partners and multinational stakeholders.
“Our first Environmental Action Team meeting was held on Tuesday, March 4. All together, we now have 14 eager students that want to get involved and take initiative at Douglas,” said Ally MacGrotty, DSU and EAT spokesperson. “It was apparent that transportation, water, consumption, the earth, energy, and recycling systems were the top six topics of concern in which our team plans to address, work towards and actively gain awareness of sustainable initiatives that all students can take to fight climate change.”
But along with EAT, the DSU tries its best to lessen its impact. “We turn off our lights at all times necessary; we always recycle our pizza boxes from Pub Nights; we email rather than fax; we conserve paper by having our minutes, constitution and bylaws on the computer for students to request; we recycle our paper, pop cans and bottles; and, of course, encourage students to act with the same volition,” stated MacGrotty.
EAT has planned green events that all students are invited to attend, including a Water Taste Test and participation in the Commuter Challenge. “Our next endeavour after the Water Taste Test is to enter into the Commuter Challenge with other universities and colleges in June. Students will have the opportunity to record how many kilometres it takes for them to come to school,” said MacGrotty.
And, according to MacGrotty, change is possible. “We believe it is very feasible to implement a successful widespread green initiative at Douglas because these students are so engaged and enthusiastic.”