ABA GREEN NEWS

Beauty Meets Function

In an ongoing effort to create a welcoming, beautiful and functional campus environment for our students, the Facilities Services Grounds crew spent the summer installing low-cost landscaping features across the campus that consist of flower and plant beds surrounded by rock planters and retaining walls.

The new settings serve as both a means to guide pedestrians along intended walkways and enhance the natural beauty in key campus locations. The planters contain primarily sustainable California native plants, a practice aligned with the University's commitment to sustainability. They also serve as rest and seating areas for the campus community.

Depicted below are “before and after” pictures of progress made near Brighton Hall. Even on a campus well regarded for its beautiful tree-covered natural environment, there is always room for improvement.

Campaign Begins at Sac State

In a collaborative effort between Sac State’s Sustainability Program, The Well's Student Health Center Pharmacy and the California Product Stewardship Council, Sac State is sponsoring a collection bin for pharmaceuticals, the first of its kind in Sacramento.

The Rx bin, located just inside The Well, is a means for students, faculty, and staff to properly dispose of their over-the counter-medications, non-narcotic prescriptions, and unwanted vitamins and supplements.

According to Pharmacist Janet Dumonchelle, 40 percent of all prescription medication ends up improperly discarded or flushed. This leads to medications ending up in our water ways. "Take the first step toward cleaning up our water supplies and protecting families," advocated Pharmacist Janet Dumonchelle, during her August Business Partners Round Table presentation. "Let us show our commitment to protecting the environment and preventing prescription abuse."

For pill-based medications and supplements, users are instructed to place them in a plastic bag and drop the bag into the designated drop box. For liquid-based medications, instructions include removing any identifying labels/personal information before depositing the bottle into the drop box. All deposits are intended to be anonymous.

This is not only the first of six bins planned for the Sacramento area, but the first one located on a CSU campus.

For more information about the program, visit the Student Health & Counseling Services' Medication Disposal webpage.