There is a growing trend to make the world “greener” with the continual publicity of the global climate change phenomenon.Some of these groups include the U.S. Green Building Council and the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards. Both of these organizations have evaluated TCU facilities and, unfortunately, the buildings on campus don’t measure up.

The new student center currently under construction fell short of meeting the environmental standards of LEED and is going to be submitted for review by the USGBC.

With the higher demand for more sustainable buildings, the university should strive to go beyond the bare minimum. Having greener structures does cost more in the initial contracting, but money is a small price to pay for a healthy environmental footprint.

Several area campuses have made the effort to go above the levels set by the two organizations. Southern Methodist University’s new engineering building met LEED standards, and in Houston, Rice University has plans for all of its new facilities to pass the test.

Though sustainability is turning into a buzz-word among the environmental support factions, it is something that needs to be taken into consideration with ongoing construction and building development.

TCU scored low yet again when the “Sustainability Report Card” evaluated six Texas campuses. The highest scoring university was the University of Texas at Austin and TCU finished fifth out of six in the rankings.

Disputes still exist regarding global warming and going green, but more progress needs to be made toward environmental preservation than simply using organic silverware and riding a Purple Bike.

It is a start, but by no means is it a sufficient effort.

Associate editor Marcus Murphree for the editorial board.