In this era of green"" living, universities across the nation are taking the necessary steps toward developing a sustainable society. UW-Madison is among those universities.
Still, critical sustainable measures remain absent at UW-Madison. Most notably, Camp Randall and Kohl Center events offer little to no active recycling, so recycling at many UW Athletic events is essentially nonexistent.
According to Barry Fox, director of facilities for the UW Athletic Department, recycling at athletic events is not a feasible task.
""In the late 90s, we attempted to extend recycling to our events,"" Fox said in an e-mail. ""Unfortunately, the level of contamination to the designated waste streams made this effort impractical.""
""It's significant to note that we also learned from this experience that it's inefficient and counterproductive to attempt to use custodial staff to source separate from a contaminated waste stream. Therefore, we have determined that such a level of recycling is not feasible within UW Athletics,"" Fox explained.
Fostering the ""We Conserve"" program, countless green groups throughout campus, and close traditional ties to environmentalism, UW-Madison epitomizes a university dedicated to sustainability. Aldo Leopold, famous for writing ""A Sand County Almanac,"" taught at UW-Madison. Former Sen. Gaylord Nelson, graduate of UW-Madison Law School and namesake for UW-Madison's Institute for Environmental Studies, founded Earth Day.
But universities across the country have emphasized the practicality of event recycling.
According to CSTV.com, this football season, Michigan State University launched a ""Go Green"" initiative. The initiative included an expansion of recycling containers throughout the 75,000-seat Spartan Stadium and even provides containers in key tailgating areas, according to Michigan Waste Management Services.
The University of West Virginia offers free admission to 100 student volunteers per game to direct patrons to recycling bins and encourage correct sorting of garbage and recyclables, according to U.S. College Hockey Online's website.
Throughout the 2006 football season, University of North Carolina's Kenan Stadium recycled an average of 4.28 tons of plastics per game, according to the UNC Office of Waste Reduction and Recycling annual report.
Other universities have taken the next step in conservation. The University of Nebraska and Penn State University incorporated biodegradable products for their athletic events, according to the University of Oregon's ""Recycling and Beyond: A College Campus Primer,"" from the UO Recycling Program website.
Boasting the oldest recycling program in the country, The University of Colorado at Boulder has been actively recycling at Buff games since 1994. The university itself established the CU Recycling program in 1976, according to its website - years before many other universities undertook ""green"" initiatives.
Like the University of West Virginia, the University of Florida's FSU Collection and Recycling Program uses volunteers to direct patrons to recycling bins as part of their ""Garnet and Gold Goes Green"" recycling program.
However, without a centralized recycling program, the UW Athletic Department finds it difficult to implement these kinds of noble sustainability efforts.
Daniel Einstein, administrative program manager for UW-Madison's Facilities, Planning and Management, explained the way recycling works at UW-Madison.
""Different administrative units, such as Housing, Athletics, UW Hospital and the Unions each operate their own collection programs within their respective buildings,"" Einstein explained. ""Physical Plant provides recycling services inside administrative and academic buildings. Once materials are moved to the outside collection containers, Physical Plant trucks transfer materials from all across campus to the recycling center.""
Because UW-Madison cannot hold any one person or group responsible for recyclable materials going to waste, according to Einstein and Fox, it is difficult to regulate even campus recycling.
""The university is decentralized to the degree that there is no one person responsible for materials getting recycled,"" Einstein said. ""There is no person with the title of 'Recycling Coordinator' on campus.""
This decentralized management system can lead to some confusion about which materials can be recycled on campus - and where students may find collection containers, according to Einstein.
""Bottom line, all units on campus should be offering their occupants indoor recycling containers,"" he said.
UW-Madison sophomore John Holzhauer, a fan at the Sept. 15 Badger game against The Citadel, expressed his concern for the issue.
""We have the 'We Conserve' signs all over campus. That seems to be promoting an eco-friendly atmosphere,"" Holzhauer mused. ""And then to have such a vast and heavily used area without recycling doesn't make sense. It would make a big difference to do that.""
In response to the absence of standardized recycling for athletic facilities, a number of student athletes took the issue of recycling into their own hands.
UW-Madison junior and rower Maggie Galloway established an Earth Coalition of Student Athletes last year, after discovering the UW Boathouse did not recycle.
""It's exciting to get together a group of athletes who care not just about being competitive athletes and succeeding in school, but also about taking care of the environment,"" Galloway said.
With the help of administrative staff, she implemented the first recycling program at the Porter Boathouse this past spring. Galloway and teammates began by collecting the recyclables after practice once a week. Eventually they received the proper bins, allowing the boathouse's custodial staff to separate the recycling.
""The women's crew team has set a wonderful example of what is possible,"" said UW-Madison rural sociology professor Jack Kloppenburg.
Kloppenburg is working with representatives from athletic teams, Greek organizations and student environmental groups to form a campus-wide coalition to address the campus' recycling obstacles.
""Students from all sorts of backgrounds care about this, and we'd like to find ways to encourage and enhance recycling throughout the University community,"" he said.
