Make every day Earth Day

Today, along with the rest of the country, Bloomington will celebrate Earth Day. This is a perfect time to reflect on how lucky we are to be living in such a beautiful environment and to renew our efforts to protect that environment. \nFor the most part, Bloomington does a nice job of protecting its environment. \nWith so much to appreciate and so many students supporting the effort, it hasn't been as big a problem as it has for other cities. We should keep this level of dedication to the environment as we return to our respective homes for the summer and stress how important it is for everyone to do their part in protecting our Earth.\nRecycling is readily available in the dorms and computer labs around campus, but offers little to non-dorm residents. One thing the University could do to celebrate Earth Day would be to invest in some recycling bins for various locations around campus other than the dorms. And Bloomington should make it a priority to protect the rest of the city, offering more recycling bins on off-campus property.\nAnother effort that should be taken is to make recycling available to apartment residents. As it stands, students who live in apartment complexes must sort their own garbage and then make a trek out to Old State Road 37 South to drop it off. As you would guess, many students find this too large a burden of their valuable time and will simply opt to pass up recycling altogether. If recycling bins were offered to apartment residents, one could only assume that many more students would take it up.\nAs easy as it is, we all need to take the necessary precautions to protect the environment we live in. Recycle as much as you can. Take a bus instead of driving your car (most likely you'll save yourself a parking ticket as well as saving the air we breathe). And it's always good to conserve electricity.\nEarth Day provides a time for us all to step up and refocus our efforts to preserve the environment. We only get one Earth, and if we ruin it, there is no second chance. While our government pours numerous dollars into fixing our environment, preventing further problems can be as easy as choosing the recycling bin over the trash can. Think of what this campus might look like in 30 years if we don't take care of it -- when our kids are going here and can't enjoy a campus like the one we have now.\nEveryone should use Earth Day to take in the beauty of Bloomington and this campus and to think of ways we can protect and improve it.