USF receives an A- when it comes to compost

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By CARMEN DUNFORD

SAN FRANCISCO — A college campus keeps up with its city to be environmentally friendly and help people with atypical choices.

University of San Francisco recently received an A- for its environmental efforts on campus, according to the school’s website. Its efforts to convert water fountains to water bottle refill stations, its garden project and expanding compost services earned the school the grade.

To be in compliance with San Francisco law, University of San Francisco offers compost bins in the cafeteria and in the dorm restrooms for food and paper towel waste. Off-campus students have composts in their city apartments. Ally Gnesin, whose minor is environmental studies, said it’s easy to be environmentally aware at USF.

“San Francisco is very proactive in that,” Gnesin said. “It’s illegal to not have a compost, and it’s a very positive thing.”

The cafeteria is a great place to participate in the compost craze and to appreciate the other amenities USF offers.  SpudWare is the brand of utensils used which are 80 percent potato starch and 20 percent soy oil and biodegrade in 180 days, according to the website.

The cafeteria also offers a vegan bar for animal product-conscious people. Lauren Falces, a freshman from New Jersey, said a lot of people she meets on campus are vegetarians or vegans. She said the way the campus is set up makes it easier to walk everywhere, use composts and be a recycler.

“I am so much more eco-friendly here than I was at home,” Falces said. “It’s organic everywhere.”

Keeping the campus green takes a lot of effort. Amy Constable, a communications major from Boulder, Colo., said their outdoor field, Negoesco Field, is a turf made of recycled Nike sneakers.

The Green Team and Net Impact are student clubs involved in helping the USF campus stay environmentally friendly, but many students find other ways to help out. The San Francisco Foghorn, the USF student newspaper, wrote an article on the Performing Arts and Social Justice Department updating “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” for an environmentally conscious audience. To stick with an environmentalist theme, a tree for the set is made of used and worn umbrellas.

 

 

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