2008 Woodie Awards
Debate persists over campus smoking zones
Smokers left to face the elements without covered smoking areas find shelter against walls and under trees.
Daniel Nash
Issue date: 11/15/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
The green painted lines in various places on campus are not just for decoration.
In March 2007, the University of Washington Board of Regents established regulations that prohibit smoking on UW campuses.
The measure was introduced in compliance with Initiative 901, which amended Washington state law to prohibit smoking in places of employment and within 25 feet of building openings. The green lines outline the only areas on campus where smoking is legally permitted.
The smoking ban applies to UW faculty, staff, students and visitors. The university's Tacoma campus includes six designated smoking areas, marked by green painted squares, cemented ash trays, and - to the dismay of some smokers - no constructed cover.
Milt Tremblay, director of facilities for UWT, was involved in the planning and placement of smoking areas prior to the ban, along with Dave Leonard of the Environmental Health and Sciences department on the Seattle campus and an unnamed representative from the Pierce County Health Department.
According to Tremblay, the initial phase of planning included two town meetings open to faculty, staff, and students - smokers and non-smokers alike. In this open forum, the campus could discuss a plan agreeable to all parties.
"No one showed up," Tremblay said.
Planning the placement of each site continued without community input. "We wanted to make [the areas] as convenient as possible," Tremblay said. "For instance, we tried to include one in front of the Mattress Factory, but according to the Pierce County Health representative, we couldn't do that because it would have been directly in the path students use to enter the building."
As a result, a site was placed in a far corner of the Cragle parking lot.
Walking to designated smoking areas may require more travel time, but UWT Facilities tried to disperse the smoking areas evenly.
"We tried to include at least one smoking area in each quadrant of campus," Tremblay said.
The six areas are spread around the campus. At least two of them are in areas that are unavoidable for wheelchair-users or anyone who uses the ramps near the smoking areas.
Though a place to smoke is accessible from most sections of the campus, none of the areas have covers built in place to keep their patrons sheltered from the elements. On a wet day it is not unusual to see students smoking beyond the boundaries of the green boxes, either near trees or next to a building's outer walls.
"The lack of cover makes me feel like a second-class citizen. When it's raining… you want a dry place to sit down," said Kevin Wallace, a UWT student and smoker.
When asked about the lack of covered smoking areas, Tremblay said, "If you cover it, it's a structure, and once you have a structure, you can't smoke in it. That was the interpretation [by Pierce County Health] at the time, but that can change depending on the day you ask."
The inconsistency of the health department's interpretation of I-901 was confirmed by a tour of the Tacoma Community College campus, provided by a Student Life representative. The TCC campus contains four Plexiglas "smoking shelters" constructed like bus stop booths.
In addition to the inconvenience to smokers, the enforceability of the initiative remains questionable. John Coulter, executive director of the Health Sciences Administration at UW, sent a letter to the deans, directors and chars of UW about how to enforce the smoking ban.
"Enforcement of the no smoking rule will be a challenge," he wrote. "The local health department is the regulatory agency responsible for enforcement and the university has already received notices of violation. At the university, employing departments are responsible for enforcing the rule within their facilities, and the University Police and local police in other areas can also be called upon to enforce the rule."
But some believe it would be too farfetched to call the Tacoma police about a smoking violation on campus.
"When it comes to the public, the only way we can enforce it is to call the Tacoma Police Department and have them come to arrest [the smoker]. You can imagine how they would respond if we called and said, 'Hey, we have a guy smoking, can you take care of this?'," Tremblay said.
Instead, UW faculty are encouraged to help enforce the no smoking policy.
"I told my staff… that they need to set the example," Tremblay said. "If I see someone smoking, I let them know, politely, that we're trying to create a healthy environment."
Students who violate campus smoking policy can expect the actions taken against them to vary depending on the circumstances. According to Cedric Howard, associate vice chancellor for Student Affairs, "If the student is found responsible, the student's sanctions are assessed."
The action may be as simple as a written reprimand. If a student is warned repeatedly, or if a student is aggressive with someone about smoking in the area, then consequences may be harsher.
"Sanctions vary for each incident," Howard said.
But some students, like Wallace, feel the policy itself is punishment enough
"It's unregulated, unenforceable, and unrealistic. Just ridiculous," he said.
In March 2007, the University of Washington Board of Regents established regulations that prohibit smoking on UW campuses.
The measure was introduced in compliance with Initiative 901, which amended Washington state law to prohibit smoking in places of employment and within 25 feet of building openings. The green lines outline the only areas on campus where smoking is legally permitted.
The smoking ban applies to UW faculty, staff, students and visitors. The university's Tacoma campus includes six designated smoking areas, marked by green painted squares, cemented ash trays, and - to the dismay of some smokers - no constructed cover.
Milt Tremblay, director of facilities for UWT, was involved in the planning and placement of smoking areas prior to the ban, along with Dave Leonard of the Environmental Health and Sciences department on the Seattle campus and an unnamed representative from the Pierce County Health Department.
According to Tremblay, the initial phase of planning included two town meetings open to faculty, staff, and students - smokers and non-smokers alike. In this open forum, the campus could discuss a plan agreeable to all parties.
"No one showed up," Tremblay said.
Planning the placement of each site continued without community input. "We wanted to make [the areas] as convenient as possible," Tremblay said. "For instance, we tried to include one in front of the Mattress Factory, but according to the Pierce County Health representative, we couldn't do that because it would have been directly in the path students use to enter the building."
As a result, a site was placed in a far corner of the Cragle parking lot.
Walking to designated smoking areas may require more travel time, but UWT Facilities tried to disperse the smoking areas evenly.
"We tried to include at least one smoking area in each quadrant of campus," Tremblay said.
The six areas are spread around the campus. At least two of them are in areas that are unavoidable for wheelchair-users or anyone who uses the ramps near the smoking areas.
Though a place to smoke is accessible from most sections of the campus, none of the areas have covers built in place to keep their patrons sheltered from the elements. On a wet day it is not unusual to see students smoking beyond the boundaries of the green boxes, either near trees or next to a building's outer walls.
"The lack of cover makes me feel like a second-class citizen. When it's raining… you want a dry place to sit down," said Kevin Wallace, a UWT student and smoker.
When asked about the lack of covered smoking areas, Tremblay said, "If you cover it, it's a structure, and once you have a structure, you can't smoke in it. That was the interpretation [by Pierce County Health] at the time, but that can change depending on the day you ask."
The inconsistency of the health department's interpretation of I-901 was confirmed by a tour of the Tacoma Community College campus, provided by a Student Life representative. The TCC campus contains four Plexiglas "smoking shelters" constructed like bus stop booths.
In addition to the inconvenience to smokers, the enforceability of the initiative remains questionable. John Coulter, executive director of the Health Sciences Administration at UW, sent a letter to the deans, directors and chars of UW about how to enforce the smoking ban.
"Enforcement of the no smoking rule will be a challenge," he wrote. "The local health department is the regulatory agency responsible for enforcement and the university has already received notices of violation. At the university, employing departments are responsible for enforcing the rule within their facilities, and the University Police and local police in other areas can also be called upon to enforce the rule."
But some believe it would be too farfetched to call the Tacoma police about a smoking violation on campus.
"When it comes to the public, the only way we can enforce it is to call the Tacoma Police Department and have them come to arrest [the smoker]. You can imagine how they would respond if we called and said, 'Hey, we have a guy smoking, can you take care of this?'," Tremblay said.
Instead, UW faculty are encouraged to help enforce the no smoking policy.
"I told my staff… that they need to set the example," Tremblay said. "If I see someone smoking, I let them know, politely, that we're trying to create a healthy environment."
Students who violate campus smoking policy can expect the actions taken against them to vary depending on the circumstances. According to Cedric Howard, associate vice chancellor for Student Affairs, "If the student is found responsible, the student's sanctions are assessed."
The action may be as simple as a written reprimand. If a student is warned repeatedly, or if a student is aggressive with someone about smoking in the area, then consequences may be harsher.
"Sanctions vary for each incident," Howard said.
But some students, like Wallace, feel the policy itself is punishment enough
"It's unregulated, unenforceable, and unrealistic. Just ridiculous," he said.
Designated Smoking Areas on Campus
- Northwest end of the Longshoremen's Hall parking lot
- Behind the Pinkerton building
- Between Dougan and WCG
- At the bottom of the main stairs near WG
- Far corner of the Cragle parking lot
- Between the main stairs and the ramp by the Science building
Be the first to comment on this story