Club Earth was created 11 years ago to promote environmental awareness on campus and in the community.

“Planting trees, building bird houses and providing picnic tables are things we like to do,” said Thomas N. Smith, Environmental Technologies Instructor. Olivia Eisenhauer, now an Adjunct Psychology Professor, originally founded Club Earth.

The club's main goal is to plant 20 trees throughout campus before next Fall. On Thursday, Sept. 28, 2000, Club Earth planted its first tree in between the Palomino Center and the Applied Science building.

Money for Club Earth comes from fundraisers. The next Club Earth fundraiser is going to be during PACHANGA, a school-wide celebration on Saturday, Oct. 21 from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Admission is free.

Club Earth meets every Tuesday and Thursday from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. in MS, Room 105. The president of the club is Manuel Luna Jr., and he may be reached at 432-1060.

Meanwhile, here are ten things all of us can do to improve our environment:

1.While brushing, shaving or washing dishes, turn the faucet off.

2. Stop junk mail. Write to Mail Preference Service at Direct Marketing Association-11 West 42 St., P.O. Box 3861, New York, NY 10163. They'll stop your name from being sold to most large mailing list companies.

3. Snip six-pack rings. Plastic holders are an ocean hazard to birds and other marine life.

4. Don't use Styrofoam. There is no such thing as “safe” polystyrene foam. Avoid using foam packaging found in egg cartons, disposable picnic goods, etc.

5. Plant a tree. This is an effective way to fight the greenhouse effect because trees can remove large quantities of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere over time.

6. Recycle your aluminum. If you throw an aluminum can out of your car window, it will still litter the earth up to 500 years later.

7. Carpool to school/work. If each commuter car carried just one more person, we would save 600,000 gallons of gasoline a day and prevent 12 million pounds of carbon dioxide from polluting the atmosphere.

8. Replace your conventional showerhead with a “low flow” model to reduce water use by 50 percent or more. The flow rate will be cut to just three gallons per minute or less, but you'll still get nice and clean.

9. Install a “displacement device” in your toilet. It can cut your annual water use by thousands of gallons.

10. Recycle motor oil. Americans use approximately a billion gallons of motor oil every year and three hundred and fifty million gallons of it winds up in the environment.

(Source: “50 Simple Things You Can Do To Save the Earth.” The Works Group)