As Syracuse University continues to explore the possibility of becoming a smoke-free campus in a joint effort with the Onondaga County Health Department, students are left wondering if and how a ban would affect SU’s neighboring college.

Plans to explore or impose a smoking ban at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry have not begun, but the buzz at SU has people talking about the possible effects of a smoke-free campus.

Peter Jerdo, a junior environmental studies major, said he thinks a smoking ban at ESF would be inconvenient for smokers, though he is not a smoker himself. He said he thought a SUNY-wide ban would create uproar due to the large number of smokers he has seen. 

‘It would be a pretty big change to the way things have been for forever,’ Jerdo said.

Although a ban could make life more difficult for smokers at ESF, it could have positive benefits for the campus as a whole, he said. Jerdo would like to walk to class without passing through clouds of cigarette smoke, he said.  

‘It would certainly cut back on litter on campus from cigarette butts,’ he said.

And if SU imposes a smoking ban, ESF could feel the negative effects of SU smokers looking for a new place to smoke, Jerdo said. Proponents could use this as an argument for an ESF smoking ban if the college ever decides to explore the idea, he said.

The Office of Student Life could not be reached for comment.

Despite not having a full-out smoking ban, ESF currently has a smoking policy in effect that aims to reduce the negative impacts of smokers on non-smokers, according to the policy. 

As part of the New York state Legislature’s 2003 restrictions on smoking in public places of employment, ESF adopted a campus-wide smoking policy. The policy prohibits smoking in all ESF-owned buildings and vehicles, in outdoor areas where flammable or combustible materials are stored and within 25 feet of any doors, windows, loading docks or air intake vents. People can still smoke in outdoor areas, such as the Quad or parking lots.

Those who do not comply with the policy are subject to disciplinary action through the Office of Human Resources or the Student Judiciary. Violators of the policy are also subject to civil fines due to noncompliance with Article 13E of the New York state Public Health Law, which forbids smoking in public places of employment. 

ESF’s smoking policy also includes a Smoking Cessation Assistance program, which provides a telephone hotline for people trying to quit, a free starter kit of nicotine patches for eligible smokers, and information and tips about how to successfully quit smoking. 

Although Jerdo said he would not be bothered by a smoking ban, he said he is torn over whether students and faculty have the right to smoke on campus. 

‘On the one hand, it’s just another thing that people can consume to make themselves feel good,’ Jerdo said. On the other hand, he said, secondhand smoke is harmful, especially to people who are allergic.

Since cigarettes are taxed and legally treated in a similar way to alcohol, Jerdo said he understands why a college campus would ban smoking. 

A smoking ban at ESF would also help the college in its effort to reduce its carbon footprint, which includes greenhouse gas emissions like carbon dioxide found in cigarette smoke, Jerdo said. 

ESF students living in SU dorms would be affected if SU enacted a smoking ban, said Ellen Czajkowski, a junior conservation biology major and resident assistant at Skyhall III. Students would probably go to ESF to smoke or simply try to smoke in restricted areas without being noticed, Czajkowski said. 

‘Since we use so many of SU’s facilities,’ Czajkowski said, ‘people would need to go out of their way to smoke elsewhere.’

jlsiart@syr.edu

Published on October 31, 2010 at 12:00 pm