Changing habits is an often repeated mantra of the sustainability effort. The week of Nov. 3, students accustomed to heaping their trays with several plates of Alliot's finest will have to make some adjustments to their habits, and maybe make some extra trips back to the grill line. If the tray-less test-run goes smoothly and is well-received, Alliot will go completely tray-less next semester.
Going tray-less gets a green thumbs-up
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First-year Michael Robinson snagged a tray despite the week's plates-only policy.
(Photo by Megan Davin) |
Student Association president Steve O’Neil and secretary of Student Life Gary Levante have been working with Sodexo to set this project in motion. They also have the support of St. Michael’s sustainability coordinator Heather Ellis and Green Up.
“It’s another visible thing people are actively engaged in,” Ellis says.
The main goals of going tray-less are sustainability and economic savings, Levante says.
Eleven oz. of water are used in the cleaning of each tray with a total of over 1,600 gallons used per week. All water used is hot water, adding extra cost, St. Michael’s dining services general manager Hank Strashnick says.
In addition to a decline in water and chemicals used to wash trays, a tray-less Alliot would reduce the amount of food wasted by students. Trays add to waste because students are likely to take more food than they are able to eat, Levante says.
The S.A. has been raising awareness of the benefits of a tray-less Alliot. Levante presented a PowerPoint during the S.A. meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 21 explaining the benefits. The presentation is now airing on the campus channel 4.
“The trial is to gauge student reaction,” Strashnick says. Both he and O’Neil emphasize students’ voices in the matter.
After the pilot week, Strashnick, Green Up, the S.A., and Ellis will sit down and look at the results of the trial.
“We want to make sure students have a chance to give their input,” O’Neil says.
“I think Alliot going tray-less is a great idea,” 2011 class president Claire McQuillen says. “It seems to have worked at other colleges that have tried the program. It’s a great step in the direction of the ‘green’ environment our campus is working towards."
Other students have doubts about a tray-less dining hall.
“It is going to make Alliot much dirtier because people are going to spill more things and drop more plates because they will be trying to juggle so much,” sophomore Christina Dennis says.
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Trays will return at week's end, but next semester could be completely tray-less.
(Photo by Megan Davin) |
Trays will still be available for families, young children, and students with disabilities, Strashnick says.
It worked for Middlebury...
St. Michael’s is not the first school in the area to attempt a tray-less dining hall. Middlebury, Champlain, and most of UVM’s dining halls are already completely tray-less, Levante says.
Middlebury’s dining hall went tray-less in August 2007.
The change was well-received by a high proportion of students says Matthew Biette, director of Dining Services at Middlebury, says. Everyone got used to it quickly, he adds.
Middlebury’s primary reason for the switch was an attempt to obtain carbon-neutrality.
Tray-washing uses a lot of energy. It requires the use of hot water and soap, human energy to take trays out, and a cooling system to lower the room temperature risen by so much hot water, Biette says.
The greatest challenge was letting people know that there is still plenty of food for them, Biette says. It just means they might have to come up for seconds or thirds.
At Middlebury, the switch to a tray-less dining hall had a lasting effect on food waste produced. Almost a half-pound of waste per meal served was saved because of the change, Biette says.
Biette predicts a lukewarm reception from students at St. Michael’s due to timing of the tray-less pilot week. Mid-season is not the easiest time because people have already set their patterns, he says.
Goodbye trays, hello late-night snacking
If all goes well with the pilot week and Alliot becomes tray-less next semester, Levante and O’Neil hope to institute a “fourth meal” in the dining hall.
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While evaluating tray-less week results, Strashnick says dining services will balance keeping students satisfied with achieving green benefits.
(Photo by Cailey McDermott) |
“Fourth meal is a late-night program during the week,” Strashnick says.
In most fourth meal programs at other schools, the dining hall shuts down at a normal time, and then re-opens from 10 to midnight, he says. One main station stays open along with what Strashnik refers to as “fun food” such as cookies, ice cream and coffee.
Students have made comments expressing desire for a fourth meal, Levante says.
O’Neil points out the already existing popularity of late-night snacking, visible by the ever present Dominoes cars on campus and the popularity of the Knight Stand.
A fourth meal would be taking the success of Residence Life serving food in the quad on weekends and extending it to weeknights, he says.
Simply going tray-less would only cover about 10 or 15 percent of the cost of instituting a fourth meal, Strashnick says.
The soonest students could see a fourth meal in Alliot is next semester, when O’Neil says there is a chance of a trial-run of the program.
“The earliest it would be institutionalized is next year,” he says.
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