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ECOS Receives Award from Trees for Houston
5/12/2008
 Houston’s Harris County has recently made headlines for being the top carbon dioxide emitting county in the United States, but University of St. Thomas students have been recognized for doing their part to offset the amount of pollutants in the air by planting trees.
UST’s Environmentally Concerned Organization of Students (ECOS) chapter was selected by Trees for Houston to receive the Arbor Day Award. The recipients were recognized at a reception on Tuesday, May 13 at Memorial Park.
“We would like to thank you for your extraordinary contribution to the greening of Houston, specifically your volunteer efforts with our organization,” said John Cutler, Trees for Houston president. “These trees add the beauty of our city and they also clean and cool our air, manage rainwater, prevent erosion, shelter wildlife and dress our views in green.”
ECOS members and introductory environmental science students participated in an estimated 14 tree-plantings last year, said Dr. Maury Harris, associate professor of environmental studies. The award recognizes the students for planting more than 700 trees this year. They are working toward the University’s goal of 26,000 to 28,000 trees to reduce the University’s carbon footprint in Houston, Harris said. In addition to tree plantings, the group also held an Earth Day lunch in the Academic Mall with Tri Beta, where they raised awareness about environmental issues and informed students about the need to recycle.
Harris said the tree-planting efforts can mainly be attributed to student participation, especially senior environmental studies major Murray Meyers. A champion for environmental causes around campus, Myers also revamped the successful recycling efforts. In the RecycleMania competition, UST placed first among Texas universities, and fifth among universities across the Unites States for per capita recycling. Myers was also recently honored with the Presidential Community Service Award and the Marsha A. Wooldridge Citizenship Award.
“The members of ECOS have been very active in trying to develop collaborations with groups like Trees for Houston,” Harris said. “Every day, acres and acres of trees are cut down, and every tree we remove, there is one less way to clean the air and one less way to comply with the Clean Air Act.”
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