Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 29, 2004)
An independent newspaper http://www.dailyemerald.com Thursday, January 29, 2004 Since 1900 University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon Volume 105, Issue 88 S' Recycling to update sorting methods I ne campus Kecycling program will be switching to collect-all containers to encourage recycling By Caron Alarab Senior News Reporter Every term for the past two years, junior Quintin Bauer has sorted the campus soda bottles from the cans and the newspapers from the term papers. And he loves every minute of it. "This is probably the best job I can think of right now," the Campus Re cycling employee said. Bauer is just one of 40 students who collect and sort campus recy clables, which need to be trash free for Campus Recycling to sell them in bulk. "Probably everything you get is gonna have a little trash in it," Bauer added. "But lots of times the recycling is right by a garbage can." Bauer said he has become "kind of obsessed" with recycling through his job, which is why he doesn't mind sorting through all purpose recycling cans. "It's really not that big of a deal," he said. "And people recycle more that way than if they had to sort it themselves." Environmental Resource and Recy cling Program Manager Karyn Kaplan said the program has shifted more to ward the "collect-all system" for that exact reason: to encourage recycling. Although sorted containers, such as the one outside the Buzz Coffee house, may seem to make the sorter's job easier, Kaplan said the single bins that allow for multiple types of recy cling will soon dominate the campus. "(Sorted bins) are scheduled to be upgraded soon," she said. "We just don't have room for them." Despite the manpower that goes into the process of sorting recyclables, Kaplan said the biggest and most consistent problems with campus Campus Recycling employee Quintin Bauer is one of 40 students who collects and sorts recyclables. recycling are "high contamination levels," a result of the trash and food waste thrown in the mix. "Either these people are not dis cerning recycling from trash cans, or they just don't care;" Student Recycling Coordinator Jeff Ziglinski said. "Ideal istically, everyone would put every thing in the appropriate containers." One way the program has handled the problem is by strategically placing recycling bins next to garbage cans. By making the recycling option more ac cessible, Kaplan said bin placement has significantly reduced contamina tion levels on campus. "We sort everything and we get paid for that because our recycling is really clean," she said. Once all the paper, plastic, alu minum and glass recydables have been sorted on campus, each contamination-free material is sold in bulk to one of several local and statewide companies. Hence, while recycled cans are marketed to an alu minum dealer, color paper gets turned into a pulp for environmen tally friendly toilet paper. All glass and plastic is dealt to BRING Recy cling, one of the nation's oldest non profit recyclers, according to http://www.bringrecycling.org. "So we just get it to the appropriate materials brokers, and they market it," Kaplan added. Local garbage and recycling collec tor Sanipac uses a system similar to the University's "collect-all system," which is called "co-mingling," Kaplan said. The company recendy switched from boxes with separate compart ments for different items to all-pur pose recycling bins because too many Eugeneans failed to sort their recy clables properly. Instead of using trucks that hold separate containers, Sanipac now puts all recyclable materials into one container, ships it to Portland and leaves the rest to a central team of sorters and a conveyor belt. Because the University does not take cardboard, food cans and light plastic recycling in its bins like Sanipac does, Kaplan said students can some times get confused and put the wrong recyclables in campus containers. "This brings up an issue for us be cause recycling options are inconsis tent (from the city to campus)," Ka plan said. "People really need to pay attention to the different rules." Contact the business/science/ technology reporter at caronalarab@dailyemerald.com. Graduates help kids get quality education Teach for America offers the chance to help underprivileged students at schools nationwide By Chelsea Duncan News Reporter Years ago, a few University students walked by an information table in the EMU lobby that would change their lives forever. This week, those fonner students are back to recruit others for Teach For America, a two-year program that sends college gradu ates to teach in low-income, rural and urban communities nationwide. U niversity graduate and Teach For Ameri ca alumnus Quinton Vance, who walked by the Teach for America information table sev en years ago, is now the principal of a South Bronx middle school in New York City. "It takes a very open-minded person to go into teaching as a young person and make the kind of changes you want to make," he said. Currently, 24 University graduates are in the Teach For America program, working throughout the country to help underprivi leged children get a good education. A total of about 3,200 corps members work in 20 low-income, rural and urban communities. Teachers are paid a salary through the school district where they are located and generally receive health benefits and insurance. University graduate Sam Myers, one of the program's campaign coordinators on campus, said the goal for the 2004-2005 school year is to hire 2,000 new teachers na tionally, including 20 from the University. 'They look for people with leadership ex perience (and) volunteer experience. Turn to TEACH, page 4 New state law mandates motorists stop for pedestrians According to Senate Bill 315, motorists can receive a ticket for failing to stop and remain stopped for pedestrians By Lisa Catto News Reporter Drivers must say good-bye to rolling stops at crosswalks and intersections if a pedestrian is crossing the street accord ing to a new Oregon law that took ef fect Jan. 1. The Oregon Legislature passed Senate Bill 315 last session, also known as the "Stop and Stay Stopped" bill, which changes a previous law dictating what motorists can do at crosswalks. The major change the law brings is the chance of a ticket for failing to stop and remain stopped. A motorist can be ticketed when he or she does not re main still while a pedestrian is crossing an area without a traffic control device, such as a stop sign. However, drivers do not have to stop for a pedestrian on the other side of an island. Drivers are required to stop for pedestrians when making a turn, whether it is a one-way or two-way street Many other amendments in the bill replace the words "yield the right of way to" with "remain stopped for" pedestrians. Currently the base fine for violating the new law is $140, but depending on how the Eugene City Council votes in the next few weeks, it could be raised to $237. EPD spokeswoman Pam Olshanski said EPD is seeking clarification on the bill specific to controlled intersections and at which point motorists are able to proceed when a pedestrian passes. In the meantime, EPD will still en force the law. "We have an obligation to enforce the laws in place," she said. "If an offi cer sees a public safety issue, they will certainly enforce it." Willamette Pedestrian Coalition co President Linda Baker said that WPC founding member Ellen Vanderslice has been working for the legislative change since 1993. "We're very concerned about pedes trian fatalities and making a more pedestrian-friendly state," Baker said. State Sen. Ginny Burdick, D-Port land, has sponsored the bill in each Leg islative session since 1997 to make these changes. A version of the bill went through the Oregon Senate in 2001, but it didn't make it past the Oregon House. The successful bill in the 2003 leg islative session was co-sponsored by Sens. Richard Devlin, D-Tualatin; Rick Metsger, D-Mt. Hood; John Minnis, R-Fairview; and Rep. Jackie Dingfelder, D-Portland. Turn to PEDESTRIANS, page 4 WEATHER LOW 43 HIGH 55 INSIDE_ .4 Crossword.15 .15 Pulse.5 .2 Sports.13 Campus buzz. Classifieds. Commentary. NEXT ISSUE Taylor's: Trouble prone or coincidence?
