Students call for more trash cans

Norwich students say that a lack of trash receptacles around campus leads to unnecessary littering.

"Walking to and from classes or the dining hall, I always see trash at some point," said Brittane Michaud, 20, a junior business major from Lewiston, Maine.

When asked about the littering problem, Felicia Desorcie, 20, a sophomore civil engineering major from Westford, Vt., said, "It's really gross, but at the same time I don't think it's completely [the students'] fault. There's no place to really put [trash]."

"Trash can be found pretty much everywhere around campus," said Zachery Martineau, 19, a sophomore architecture major and resident adviser from Duanesburg, N.Y. "It can be seen outside of dorms and the barracks.

"South Hall constantly has trash on the sidewalk leading up to it. On the weekends, late at night, you can hear the smashing of glass bottles outside the corps barracks," Martineau said.

According to students, the main sites for this problem include the Upper Parade Ground, the dining hall entrance of the Wise Campus Center, outside of dorms and in the parking lots.

"I hear them," said David Magida, chief administrative officer. "I appreciate their desire to beautify the campus." He promised to look into adding more trash cans; however, he cautioned, "I don't want to have a gigantic selection of trash barrels" around campus.

Students particularly complained about the lack of trash cans in parking lots.

For example, in parking lot B, there are no trash cans anywhere near the staircase that most students use to get back to their dorms.

"There is a lot up in the parking lots just because people get out of their cars and there's no place for them to put their trash," said Desorcie. "They're not going to walk all the way to their dorm to throw their trash away."

The lack of receptacles in the parking lots causes "some problems because if someone needs to clean out their car and there are no trash cans available, they are more likely just to empty it on the ground," said Precious Hammond, 20, a junior athletic training major and former resident adviser from Lebanon, N.H.

"It makes the parking lots very unclean and a health hazard," said Dan Wilde, 21, a senior physical education major from Rutland, Mass. "I feel like I pay enough money not to see trash and food everywhere."

Suzanne Whitaker, 20, a sophomore communications major from Chelmsford, Mass., said she once found "a full bottle of apple cider, a bag of chips and napkins under my car" that weren't hers.

"There are also always beer cans lying around campus," Whitaker said, "and it doesn't look good if we have people visiting with their parents or prospective students."

According to students, most of the garbage consists of bottles, cans, paper, candy wrappers, food from the dining hall, alcohol containers and used condoms and wrappers.

"Bottles can be seen everywhere," Martineau said. "There are empty bottles, bottles of dip spit, and bottles of urine. It's pretty much just immature laziness."

Rocco DiMeco, 21, a junior physical education major from Worcester, Mass., said that students should be more responsible with their trash and "grow up because most people are over 18 [years old]."

"We all have to live here for the majority of the year, so why ruin it?" Johannes said.
"I don't think it is all that difficult to hold on to your trash until you reach a building where all the trash cans are," Michaud said.

"I still have trash in my pockets right now that I haven't yet emptied into a trashcan," Martineau said.

Most of the students agreed that trash receptacles should be placed on the main walking routes on campus, as well as in parking lots.

"I think there should be trash cans outside of every building," Desorcie said. "They should also be placed sporadically along the paths walking from place to place."

"I can understand that it would be difficult to have trash cans outside in the winter with all the snow," Michaud said, "but in the fall and spring there really is no reason they can't put a couple here and there."

"I think as long as we just put trash cans randomly," Desorcie said, "then people will be more likely to put the trash in the trashcans instead of just tossing it where ever they want."

"I try not to [litter]; if I have an apple I will throw it," Whitaker said, "but if there was a trashcan I would use it."

"I do litter sometimes. I just honestly don't think it's going to matter," said Zac Angelos, 21, a junior history major from Pompano Beach, Fla. "I wouldn't litter if the trash cans were more available though."

Some say that students need to take responsibility for the problem.

"It surprises me because everyone on this campus is at least the age of 18 and yet they feel they must toss their trash on the ground," said Sasha Johannes, 19, a sophomore health science major from Orlando, Fla.