Beginning next semester Butte College campus might become completely smoke-free if students do not start respecting the cleanliness of the campus. The signs that have been placed around the campus have already stated that Butte College is a "smoke-free campus", but this is hardly the case. Butte College is actually a "smoke-free campus" except for the designated areas. There are flags with yellow and black coloring that currently mark these designated smoking areas on campus. People who are caught smoking in non-designated areas on campus are charged with a $25 fee. There are about half a dozen areas designated for smoking on the campus. On the tables in these areas there have been notices placed. They read:

"Smokers Beware! You might be interested to know that the idea of banning smoking at Butte College is being bandied about by some of the Powers-That-Be on campus. This would mean that smokers like you and me would be relegated to partaking of our pleasant pastime in our cars or in the parking lots.If you'd like to forestall this trend, and prove to more than 80% of students and staff who don't smoke that we as a group are courteous and responsible, I humbly suggest that you follow these simple recommendations:

1. DON'T WALK AROUND CAMPUS SMOKING. USE THE DESIGNATED SMOKING AREAS. I PROMISE I WILL KEEP THEM AS TIDY AS I CAN FOR YOU!
2. DON'T THROW YOUR BUTTS IN THE LANDSCAPING OR ON THE CONCRETE. USE THE ASHTRAYS - THAT'S WHAT THEY'RE THERE FOR!
3. IF YOU SEE SOMEONE NOT BEING RESPECTFUL TO OUR PINK-LUNGED FELLOWS GENTLY REFER THEM TO THIS NOTICE. DON'T LET A FEW BAD APPLES SPOIL IT FOR THE REST OF US!

Yours in Solidarity,

Michael Duch, Day Shift Custodian"

Michael Duch has been working at Butte College for 12 years. He placed the flyers around campus because Duch is also a smoker and does not want a ban to be set in place. The cleanliness of the campus is important and Duch says that he only has time to get to all of the smoking areas one time a day. "I'd rather take a pro-active approach then a reactive approach", he said.

"There has been an 80% improvement in the look of the campus this semester" Duch said, referring to the improvement from last semester after placing his notices. Students have been getting better about extinguishing their cigarettes in the ashtrays provided but he also went on to say "It's a matterof self-enlightened interest. If smokers don't want to see a ban on campus it's up to them to police themselves."

Mike Miller, who is the Director of Facilities here at Butte College, says that while not formally introduced yet to administration it is a serious problem and other schools have gone in the direction of a completely non-smoking campus.

The notion was brought up because students have made complaints and the level of overall cleanliness of the campus. Miller said "The lack of people respecting the designated smoking areas" was one of the major contributors to the notion of the ban. All it would take to go through would be "a formal proposal or recommendation to administration" said Miller.

Miller also said that Butte also has to allocate extra resources to the upkeep of the campus due to the extra litter that comes from people not using the designated areas. The ban can still be prevented if students would respect the designated smoking areas.

"Remember that it's a non-smoking campus except for the designated areas" Miller said. "The students can impact the look of the campus. If students pitch in to help the campus remain clean then services can be better utilized for students."