Trek on a Campus Trail

The first day of class was a long one. The same I think will be true for the rest of the classes from here on out. For the second part of class, we were led by a student environmentalist who took us all throughout campus and eventually all the way through a nature trail starting in South Village.

Before going on this walk, I always knew that FGCU did it’s part with fulfilling elements of sustainability, but I never knew it did as much as what I learned on class Monday. From the design of the pond right down to the boardwalk behind Whitaker. It was interesting to learn that the boardwalk was made of a wood (Pao Lope) that is fire resistant, termite resistant, flood resistant you name it! It was resistant to it.

Speaking of fire resistant, I was surprised to learn that our University, along with many other Floridian Forest preserves, do what is called a "prescribed burn." The student guide pointed out that there were burn marks on some of the trunks of the palm trees. I thought this seemed odd. But what I learned was that these burn marks came from a fire that was ignited with intention. Before this moment, I was under the impression that forest fires were BAD!? So why on earth would FGCU authorize a fire to our beloved nature trails. The answer was beyond what I could have thought...

It turns out that this particular fire was prescribed back in 2004. (Amazing to me that the burn marks were still there!) The reason why this is done, is to keep the trails vegetation and any other preserve area for hat matter, under control. You see, if you let the plants grow and grow and grow, it means that if lightning were to strike and cause a fire, it could absolutely go out of control doing damage unimaginable. But the thought behind the prescribed burns is that we can, to some extent control the fire, making it less likely that and uncontrolled one will occur.

Anyway, back to the Pao Lope-- the termite resistant and fire resistant wood... which, unlike most woods which only last 20 maybe 30 years, this Brazilian hardwood lasts for 50 years.

I also learned that we keep our school very cool in a very sustainable way. On campus, we have a special plant that over night cools down water and then during the day sends that very cool water out under all the buildings through pipes and then blows cool air out into the buildings. Just these two facts alone render FGCU compatible with its motives to be a green campus. But it is not just these two facts alone. I know there is always room to grow in our campus wide efforts, but I’m confident in FGCU’s standards and that this university will continue to be consistent with its eco-empowerment mission.