In an effort to reach its goal of collecting more than 500 pairs of jeans by the end of October, Syracuse University has invited the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry to join Cotton Inc.’s college campaign.

ESF launched its participation in the ‘Cotton. From Blue to Green.’ campaign with an event in Marshall Hall Wednesday, featuring promotional Frisbees, shirts and informational pamphlets. The national campaign to bring attention to sustainable housing construction will convert the donated jeans into sustainable, natural fiber housing insulation to be used by Habitat for Humanity.

Cotton invited five universities to participate in the campaign. ESF was not included, but SU offered to collaborate with ESF to reach its goal. SU has already collected more than 400 pairs during October through collection events and donation bins located around campus, said Shaylyn Decker, president of Green Campus Initiative and senior environmental studies major.

GCI, a student organization that aims to promote sustainability at ESF, led the effort to bring the campaign to ESF and will oversee the collection events and donation bin maintenance on campus until the campaign ends Oct. 31.

SU provided the student organization with the promotional products and collection bins, making it easy for ESF to get onboard, said Decker.

‘It was so easy it seemed silly not to do it,’ she said.

She said only a few people donated at Wednesday’s event.

GCI will host two more collection events and end the campaign with the ‘Drop Your Jeans on the Quad’ event on the ESF Quad at an as-of-yet undecided date.

It takes 500 pieces of denim to insulate a house. The natural fiber, called UltraTouch Cotton insulation, has already been used in 500 new houses in communities in need, said Andrew Dorr, a senior environmental studies major and energy coordinator of GCI.

To convert the denim to insulation, zippers and buttons are removed from the jeans and then shredded to revert the denim back to its original fiber form, Dorr said. The fiber is then treated with a nontoxic solution for mold and mildew resistance and fire protection.

The insulation is made of 85 percent recycled cotton and does not contain carcinogens, formaldehyde or chemical irritants, according to the campaign’s website. It is the only insulation that contains an active mold and mildew inhibitor.

The campaign was originally launched in 2006 and collected more than 14,566 pieces of denim that year, according to the campaign’s website. The campaign saw a 110 percent increase in 2007, with more than 36,000 pieces collected. In 2009, 270,617 pieces of denim were collected and prevented 200 tons of denim from being sent to landfills. This year, several retail stores, including Gap, are participating in the campaign by offering customers discounts on new jeans when they donate old jeans. More than 270,000 pieces have been collected through retail efforts alone, according to the website.

Autumn Elniski, a freshman paper engineering major, said the transfer of jeans to insulation is a great idea.

‘It’s a good substitute for things that aren’t biodegradable,’ she said. ‘It’s a good way to recycle, so we don’t have to keep making things that are bad for the planet.’

Elniski said she hopes more schools and communities will take ESF and SU’s lead and incorporate recycling and sustainable materials into construction projects.

‘ESF is a role model for environmental responsibility in New York,’ Elniski said. ‘Hopefully, it will be integrated into the community.’

Although the turnout for Wednesday’s event was smaller than expected, Decker said she thinks donations will increase once the campaign gets more attention on campus.

‘We have about two weeks,’ Decker said. ‘I think once we get the word out and people learn where the collection bins are, things will pick up.’

jlsiart@syr.edu

Published on October 24, 2010 at 12:00 pm