Syracuse University’s choice to eliminate trays in the Ernie Davis and Graham dining halls comes off as a half-hearted gesture of environmental consciousness. Not only that, but removing trays altogether is not practical in a crowded dining hall and could potentially lead to just as much waste as when there were trays. If the university really wants to make an effort to improve sustainability, it needs to do more than just eliminating trays — but it should consider how decisions will affect students before making them.

SU Food Services decided to go tray-less because it saves water, soap, money and it cuts down on food waste. The marketing manager for the Department of Sustainability said that dining centers without trays tend to see a 15 percent decrease in food waste, because students typically take less food when they don’t have trays to carry multiple plates. The dining halls would also reduce water and soap usage because they would no longer have trays to wash. The university said they hope to make all dining halls on campus tray less in coming years.

However, some students complain that the inconvenience isn’t worth the resources the university is saving. Ernie Davis and Graham are already crowded dining centers, and students going back and forth from tables to food lines won’t help that problem. SU could strike a balance between sustainability and convenience though, if they invested in divided trays that served as plates. This could allow students to carry their food in one trip, but it would also cut down on the number of dishes students used.

If SU isn’t prepared to invest in divided trays, they should offer students the option to use trays. The university can still emphasize the environmental benefits of not using trays to those who want to be eco-friendly, but can also review other ways to improve sustainability on campus.

If tray-less dining halls really do significantly cut down on food waste, water and soap, the university shouldn’t wait to implement the same change at other dining halls. In order to truly call itself a sustainable, environmentally conscious university, SU needs to explore other eco-friendly options, in addition to eliminating trays. But while reviewing those options, it needs to take students’ experiences into account, since they are the ones eating at the dining hall.