Grab to Go, the popular new lunch option at Covenant, is causing a plastic pile-up.
“I haven't been getting grab-and-go as much because I am worried about how much plastic there is,” said Chloe Luce, a junior in the Student Apartments, “I am so conscious of how much waste I have in the world.”
Due to a large influx of students this year, Covenant has created a grab-and-go lunch option for students in a hurry between classes. The program offers sandwiches and salads in plastic containers at no extra cost.
Students eat their food on the run and then throw away the plastic containers. But there’s a problem: garbage cans are overflowing with plastic refuse.
“I do try to avoid using single-use plastics,” said Stella Owen, an off-campus senior.
Trash cans across Mills, Sanderson, Brock and especially the library are piling up with plastic containers. This creates more trash bags being used and more work for the students and staff facility workers.
“I do think it uses a lot of plastic, maybe more than needs to be used,” said Ellie Shank, a junior on Harambe!, “So I am wondering if there could be a more reusable way of plastic wrapping the sandwiches … that wouldn’t be quite so much [plastic waste].”
“I am very grateful that [Grab to Go] happens,” said Shank, “And I think it’s been super useful.” But she still wants people to be aware.
Not only are the students concerned, but the faculty are also worried about the impact plastic waste has on the environment.
“I’m bothered that it's not gonna be put on anyone’s radar,” said Dr. Phill Broussard, professor of physics. He worries that the campus does not care.
“We have been trained to not bother with any of the waste products in our lives,” said Broussard, “Nature can’t function that way, and the sad thing is we can’t either.” We, as a society, try not to interact with the waste that we produce. But that is not sustainable.
Covenant does not recycle any of the plastic it uses. It all gets thrown away and taken to landfills, where it sits, polluting the environment. Dr. Joelle Fletcher, an assistant professor of biology, said that only 9.5% of plastic waste in the United States is being recycled.
“My picture is the cherry tree with all those pink flowers,” said Broussard, “And when each one of those falls off and when they're done with their job, it's recycled perfectly.”
Nature has the perfect cycle, and faculty want to help Covenant’s community be aware of what they are doing with their plastic. The community should strive to care for the world like the Bible calls us to in Genesis 2.
A fully sustainable solution has not yet been produced, but Covenant is becoming more aware of the impact its waste has on the environment.
“Recycling is never going to solve it; it’s buying less,” said Steve Corbett, an associate professor emeritus of community development.