April 5, 2002

Contact: Victoria Silva, Department of Environmental Stewardship, (785) 864-2855.

Growing environmental office changes name, location

LAWRENCE -- The Office of Resource Conservation and Recycling at the University of Kansas has acquired a brand-new name since forming its own department and relocating to the north end of campus.

The office was renamed Department of Environmental Stewardship this winter when the growing department moved to a larger office in the Varsity House at 1043 Indiana, about two blocks north of the Kansas Union.

DES administrator Victoria Silva said the changes followed several years of growth that forced the group out of its old quarters near the School of Engineering and into a new location where the department could increase its personnel and expand services.

"When we reached a staff of 10-plus in the winter of 2000/2001, we had pretty much outgrown the Burt Hall location," Silva said. " I wanted to add more recycling centers across campus, but that meant adding more staff and adding another truck."

Because of parking problems at Burt Hall, Silva said there was no way to add new vehicles and expand those services. However, the department has redoubled its cardboard-collection and computer-salvage program.

In summer 2001, Silva began meeting with Associate Provost Lindy Eakin to explain her department's predicament. This winter, the two came up with not only the space solution but also the department's new name.

"I felt it was important that the department name was indicative of our efforts to increase environmental improvement for the campus community -- a name that conveyed more than just recycling," Silva said. "Our programs include not only waste reduction but resources, conservation efforts, and recovery and reuse.

Silva said the physical changes would help ensure the future of recycling at KU.

"I see our programs continuing to grow, not just in terms of volume of material recycled but in terms of all of our programs," she said. "The pilot composting program we had several years ago is still a goal of ours, with the scholarship halls ready to start up at a moment's notice."

The department has grown dramatically since the Office of Resource Conservation and Recycling was created in 1996. At that time, the department revamped a voluntary paper program that had been administered through the biology department, Facilities Operations and outside contracts for about three years.

In the fall of 1998, the young department acquired its first truck, enabling KU recycling to focus its attention on faculty and staff recycling efforts as well as programs in the residence and scholarship halls.

Since 1997, the number of campus offices participating in recycling efforts has grown from about 40 to more than 250. The increase eventually led to the department's adoption of recycling centers instead of single-office collections. Today, the DES serves a recycling center in every building on campus.

In addition, collection has increased from about 60 tons of paper in 1996 to more than 380 tons of office paper, newspaper, cardboard, plastic and aluminum last year.

Silva said that with the help of faculty, staff and students, the new department should continue to expand into the 21st century.

"We've grown considerably from that one-person Office of Resource Conservation and Recycling in a 6-by-10 windowless office in Burt Hall in 1996," she said. "I still see us as growing and plan to keep at it for some years to come."