Two hydration stations planned for Hillman Library

Studious students no longer need to fear dehydration — or at least the inconvenience of using… Studious students no longer need to fear dehydration — or at least the inconvenience of using a water fountain to fill a bottle.

Environmental Committee Chair Rebecca Schroeder announced the installation of two new hydration stations in the Hillman Library at the Student Government Board meeting Tuesday night at Nordy’s Place. The 16-minute meeting marked the Board’s second-to-last public meeting before the newly elected Board takes over in January.

Schroeder said that the installation of the two stations is currently under way on the ground floor and first floor. She estimated that each machine costs between $400 and $500, funded by the University’s Facilities Management

budget. The hydration stations will be installed on already-existing water fountains. Students can place their reusable water bottle in front of a sensor that triggers a spigot to refill it.

The two Hillman stations come in addition to the current station located on the first floor of the William Pitt Union, which Shroeder said has been used more than 15,700 times since installation this summer. By the end of this semester, another station, funded by Pitt’s Housing Department, will be installed in Sutherland Hall.

In further efforts to go green, Board member Ryan Gayman announced a proposal to add a sixth article to the SGB bylaws that would formally recognize the Student Sustainable Projects Committee and rename the group the Green Fund Advisory Board. The proposed bylaw states that “The Student Government Board’s Green Fund Advisory Board (GFAB) is responsible for soliciting and evaluating proposals to make the University of Pittsburgh a more sustainable institution.”

“It is important to have it in the bylaws,” Gayman said. “What is really cool is that anyone who has an idea can come to this committee.”

Students can propose ideas to the committee that focus on ways to make Pitt’s campus more sustainable. The GFAB would be responsible for allocating a “Green Fund” in the sum of $2,500. The money would come out of the Environmental Committee’s $2,500 portion of SGB’s $44,551.02 fiscal budget. SGB would be the final authority in the allocation of the fund, and the justification for the decision must be made publicly.

The Board automatically tabled the proposal until next week. Gayman urged students to check out the initiative online and talk to the Board members if they have any thoughts or comments on the proposal.  

Check out the allocations notes online at pittnews.com

Allocations

Model United Nations requested $2,064.32 to participate in an event at Penn State. The Board approved the request in full.

American Chemical Society requested $1,968 to send six group members to a national conference. The group altered the request to fund for only five members. The Board approved the request for $1,640 but denied $328 for the sixth member.