Environment Policy Offers Chance for Student Input
By Peter Douglas
Opinions Writer

As a young freshman, I had frequent cause for frustration. I used to watch as precious water flowed out of needless sprinklers, not touching any grass, down the sidewalk on its way to some concrete river. I would watch this and sit on the corner and wring my hands and cry. People would stare and laugh, but I didn't care because I felt so dejected. I wanted to do something, to stop the waste, but I felt so lost when I looked at the faceless bureaucracy of the Pomona College administration.

Okay, maybe no one has been driven to tears, but many people will agree that trying to get Pomona to support efforts at reducing the environmental impact of the college has been a frustrating process. Hopefully, though, that is about to change. The Building and Grounds Committee of the Board of Trustees recently drafted an Environmental Policy Statement. This statement has many encouraging objectives, including the use of "green" building standards on all future renovation and construction projects, efforts to improve the efficiency of energy and water use on campus, and plans to expand the recycling program and improve air quality. The implementation of the statement will be the responsibility of a new Environmental Policy Committee, headed by the Office of Campus Planning and Maintenance and made up of faculty, staff, and students. The most exciting part of this statement, however, is that the new committee is actively seeking student input on making Pomona a more environmentally sustainable campus.

It might be trite to talk about Pomona's many bright young minds, but it's true that there are a lot of smart people with a lot of ideas here. Now we have an amazing opportunity to put those ideas into action. Already, without direct support from the Pomona administration, students have established an on-campus organic farm, installed a working solar panel there, and have begun building an earth dome. With official Pomona administration help, and perhaps more importantly, its money, many more of these kinds of projects can be completed. Anyone with an idea should write a proposal and present it to the Environmental Quality Committee, a subcommittee of the ASPC Senate. With EQC approval, the proposal will go to the Environmental Policy Committee, and will, hopefully, be implemented. (The EQC meets every Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. in Smith Campus Center Room 133. Anyone with questions about this process should contact Josh Tulkin at extension 75825 or at jtulkin@pomona.edu.)

The one thing that could threaten the promise of the statement and its resulting committee is apathy. If no one seems to care, and if no ideas are proposed, then the Environmental Policy Statement will be just another meaningless piece of paper, and nothing will change. In our hectic college atmosphere, it is too easy to forget that there is more to life beyond midterms, papers, and parties. The words "yeah, that sounds really cool, but I'm just too busy right now" pass through the lips of most Pomona students on a regular basis. Of course, it's impossible to get involved with everything. But reducing Pomona's impact on the environment is worthy of a little extra time and attention. Even though as students we are here for only four years, changes implemented through this committee can directly affect our lives, making Pomona's campus a nicer, more beautiful place to live. In addition, this is one of the places in the world where it is easiest for concerned individuals to make a change. Once we leave college the power structure becomes vastly more complicated. Here, we have the chance to make a real difference in environmental policy in a way that would be nearly impossible outside the Claremont bubble.

At the same time, the responsibility of reaching the goals outlined in the Environmental Policy Statement does not rest on students alone. Truly to create change requires both energy and money, and if the college administration and the Board of Trustees are unwilling to provide either then this statement will be a disappointment. Already the school has shown willingness to act upon the statement. According to Joshua Tulkin, currently the only student on the Environmental Policy Committee, "Since the creation of this policy the school has taken several positive steps. President Stanley and Treasurer Carlene Miller have committed to helping implement a new composting program. Housekeeping has ordered new recycling bins and may expand the program. Dean of Students Ann Quinley is donating $10,000 for a new earth dome at the farm and the Board of Trustees allocated $1.6 million for sustainability features in Seaver South Renovations and construction of the new science building. However, this is only the first step in what will have to be a long path to reshaping how we make decisions at this school." Hopefully Pomona's decision-makers will continue to show this kind of support and generosity toward future projects.

It is encouraging to read this statement. It makes it seem as if we are finally about to begin making true environmental progress. It offers grounds for hope that Pomona will soon landscape with native plants, waste less water, use renewable energy and build beautiful, environmentally innovative buildings. Right now, though, this statement is only words. Nothing has changed, yet. It would be truly inspiring if students, faculty, staff, and trustees, motivated by those words, put in the time and energy to accomplish the goals set out in the statement.