As University students prepare to celebrate Earth Day, Matt Moerschbaecher has uncovered surprising information about Louisiana’s carbon footprint.”The highest amount of industrial greenhouse gas emissions in the nation are coming out of Louisiana,” Moerschbaecher said. “At the same time, the highest amount of industrial greenhouse gas emissions in Louisiana are coming out of East Baton Rouge Parish.” The Department of Oceanography and Costal Sciences doctoral student found this information from Purdue University’s The Vulcan Project, which measured carbon dioxide emissions in North America. He will present this information and additional information about the University’s carbon footprint to the Campus Committee for Sustainability at a meeting Thursday.University officials and student organizations are trying to increase student awareness about reducing their carbon footprints.”Be conscious of the amount of energy you use,” said Denise Scribner, Campus Sustainability manager. Scribner said students can decrease their impact on the environment by readjusting simple daily tasks such as taking shorter showers, washing clothes in cold water, unplugging electronics when not in use and buying locally grown food.University students will have the opportunity to calculate their own carbon footprints at today’s fourth annual LSU Earth Day celebration hosted by the Environmental Conservation Organization from noon to 4:30 p.m. on the Parade Ground.The celebration will feature musical performances, a rock wall, the Student Organization Fair and other eco-friendly activities such as recycled art and paper making, tree planting and fair trade and composting education. ECO will also announce the results from the 2009 UNPLUG: Res Life Energy Competition.”It’s important [for Earth Day] to be recognized everywhere,” said Jordan Bantuelle, co-president of ECO and biology senior. “It’s important to raise awareness about environmental issues. It’s an educational thing. Not enough people know enough about environmental issues.”Scribner said educating students on environmental issues first will be beneficial because students will teach the communities outside of LSU.”[Earth Day] raises the level of awareness and shows how committed to sustainability we are at [LSU],” Scribner said. “We raise awareness here with students, and students bring that out into the surrounding community.”Despite the early date, the Baton Rouge community held a great presence in downtown Baton Rouge on Sunday. They celebrated Earth Day at the 20th anniversary of the Louisiana Earth Day festival organized by Louisiana Earth Day, Inc., a community coalition of more than 300 volunteers.”Earth Day is important because it reminds us of our own responsibilities to maintain a clean, safe, healthy environment,” said Brenda Nixon, Louisiana Earth Day president. “It reminds us to take care of the little things.”LSU was well represented at Louisiana Earth Day with booths for the Student Wetland Society, the conservation biology class and Campus Sustainability.Scribner said the three main goals for Campus Sustainability are biodiesel expansion, campus-wide composting and classroom utilization.She said biodiesel expansion involves converting vegetable oil into biodiesel fuel to use in LSU equipment. Biodiesel fuel burns cleaner and comes at no added cost to LSU. Campus-wide composting involves taking the waste from the dining halls and converting it into landscaping soil, Scribner said. Classroom utilization will use less buildings for after-hours classes and will use less heating and ventilation.Besides the Earth Day festivals, LSU has also participated in national eco-friendly competitions like RecycleMania.”It was fun to compete, but it was also a good source of data to see where we stand compared to other schools,” said Andres Harris, Recycling and Solid Waste manager. “We’re doing well.”LSU had the second highest cumulative recyclable pounds per person among SEC schools, according to the RecycleMania results.”We recycle an average of 100 tons a month,” Harris said.Despite LSU’s recycling success within the Southeastern Conference, Harris said there’s always room for improvement.”Students need to pay attention when they are throwing away stuff,” Harris said. “They need to be aware that the recycling bins are nearby. That way, we can have less impact on the environment. Earth Day provides an opportunity for the community to be more conscious.”Showing LSU’s new commitment to a greener campus, students voted in the latest SG election to spend $5,000 of their own fees to purchase more recycling bins on campus.”This year’s theme [for LSU Earth Day] is Green Generation,” Scribner said in an e-mail. “This generation is the most environmentally aware, and this is the time to make a change, to educate and to give back to the community. Through active participation, students will impact their college campus, surrounding communities and ultimately their country toward a sustainable future.”——Contact Mary Walker Baus at [email protected]