Five things we want changed/implemented
for a more sustainable campus:
1) composting
We would like to see composting expand on campus. Currently, we have very few composting
locations and the administration/staff are generally pretty negative about the concept due to a
failed composting “Earth Tub” project several years ago
(http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~envintrn/et_troubleshooting.html). However, our campus has recently
been Certified under Tree Campus USA and has created the Lynn Lowerey Arboretum
(http://cohesion.rice.edu/naturalsciences/arboretum/projects.cfm) which includes several
gardens that could benefit from the use of locally-generated compost. We would like to see
compostable material collection at each of the five serveries. One out of five of the serveries
participates in a produce composting program for leftover and spoiled food, but we would like to
see this expand to the other four and also add a student-food-waste collection process at each
location. This would obviously have to involve a comprehensive education campaign to
accompany the compost bins in order to inform students what can be composted and why it is
important.
2) Photovoltaic Solar Panels
Located in Houston, Texas, Rice University has the right weather to maximize solar power
efficiency. Cost, however, has been our university’s primary deterrent for investing in
photovoltaics. Despite this, solar power is still on the table for the future: the new Barbara and
David Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center, constructed in 2009, was built with solar
installations in mind. The roof of the complex was built at the optimal angle for solar exposure
and with the proper structural strength and layout to support photovoltaic panels with minimal
installation effort. Because of this we would like to see the university invest in this clean energy
resource, at least at the Recreation Center, within the next three years.
3) more recycle bins outdoors
Frankly, the complete lack of outdoor recycling facilities on campus, including at the football
stadium, is unacceptable. According to the Director of Sustainability, Richard Johnson, the
reason that no bins exist is that the budget for the higher-cost acceptable “aesthetically
pleasing” has repeatedly been de-prioritized and passed over for more “exciting” and “relevant”
projects by the Facilities, Engineering, and Planning Department. We would like to see, within
the year, one outdoor recycling bin placed alongside every outdoor recycling trash bin. This
includes the sports complexes as well, especially since disposables such as water bottles and
beer cans are most often consumed at these locations.
4) ban plastic water bottles
Let’s face it, plastic water bottles are the devil. Unfortunately, we live in Houston where we have
a dichotomy between water resource scarcity (prolonged droughts, declining aquifers) and high
water consumption (large lawns, above-average water bottle usage because of extreme heat).
Although we can’t do anything to synthesize additional water resources, we can ban the use of
plastic disposable bottles. There are more than adequate locations on campus for reusable
bottles to be filled, and a student group is even currently analysing the feasibility of purchasing
several bottle cleaning stations around campus. Reusable bottles are sold on campus at almost
all of the residential colleges, as well as at the student center and can be bought for as little as
$1.00 per bottle. We think it is more than acceptable to institute a university-wide ban on the
sale of disposable bottles at on-campus vendor locations and at campus-sponsored events.
5) Low Impact Development/Water-sensitive
Landscaping
(note the dying grass in the lower half of the image)
(flooding at Rice University)
It’s hard to argue that Rice doesn’t have “green spaces”, but when you evaluate our vegetation
from a sustainability standpoint, we’re not sure how “green” those spaces really are. Huge,
repeatedly mowed and fertilized lawns surround our buildings and sidewalks. Not only do they
require an enormous amount of water to keep green in the hot summer, but the non-native
grasses are unsustainably fertilized and then cut back again over and over. We need a better,
less water intensive landscape design. We need to look at incorporating xeriscaping through
plants that have adapted to the wild and volatile Houston climate and require little to no
maintenance (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xeriscaping). By filling in our flat, open lawns with
shrubs, bushes, and other wild plants, we can also reduce our stormwater runoff. Since flooding
is maybe the number one issue in this part of Houston, focusing interdisciplinary efforts on water
retention is a necessity. In addition to the green roofs that have begun popping up around
campus, we would like to see some of the unused lawns relandscaped to incorporate aspects of
Low Impact Development (http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/green/index.cfm), such as vegetated
bioswales and rain gardens, to both reduce our requirement for irrigation and
pesticide/fertilizers, but also to help mitigate the runoff impacts of the impermeable surfaces on
campus.