Not everyone may know that ETSU has a Department of Sustainability. Probably even fewer people know that we pay a sustainability fee.
According to an article on ETSU’s website, the sustainability fee is “$7 per student, per semester.” If you want to assess whether this is a reasonable charge, let’s look at what sustainability is. The article described sustainability as “responsibly using resources to promote ecological balance.”
What has the fee accomplished? The sustainability fee was approved in 2008, alongside the Student Government Association’s support. More than $1 million in funding has gone toward student amenities like the Buc Bikes bicycle rental program and the Hydration Stations in each building for refilling reusable water bottles. The sustainability fee also installed and maintains solar panels on the Basler Center for Physical Activity (CPA) “to reduce energy usage and costs.”
Honing in on a single academic year, the results are rather impressive. In the 2016-17 year, $271,206 went toward installing LED lighting in campus buildings and bike racks throughout campus and additional Hydration Stations at the Sevier County campus. The funds also helped habitat enhancement, tree planting and improvements to the Pollinator Garden. Additionally, the ongoing Farmers Market was “approved for funding to expand its education and engagement efforts.”
These are noteworthy ways to spend the funds collected in the sustainability fees, and I don’t know who would complain at spending only $7 to see only that happen. I do have a question though. Collectively, that’s a lot of money – $271,206 gathered in one year. I wonder if this money might be better spent elsewhere. I don’t take issue with spending $7 for the fee. I merely suggest reconsidering where to direct this funding.
To prove my point on the efficacy of the funds, let’s look at solar panels, for example.
According to an article on Energy Sage, “Solar panel costs for an average-sized installation in the U.S. usually range from $11,411 to $14,874 after solar tax credits.”
That’s enough money to make you wonder if you’ll ever save enough with the solar panels to make them worth it. In the case of ETSU, money from the sustainability fee went to solar panels over a table outside the Sherrod library to charge electronic devices – something we could already do inside the library.
Students might rather see their funds directed to other areas, whether toward increased adjunct pay, more parking spaces or simply allocating them to scholarship recipients. For this reason, I suggest sending out an email poll where students can give feedback on where they’d like to see this money go. Whatever happens with it, I’m sure it’ll make our campus a better place.
