Football Footprint

Michigan State University students generate something less than their fair share of the trash that's left in Spartan Stadium after a home football game, a recent study showed.

MSU environmental journalism students examined a statistical sample of trash after MSU's Nov. 6 loss to Ohio State University. They found that students generated just 27 percent of the stadium's trash while occupying about 36 percent of the stadium's seats.

While that may surprise some people, it doesn't surprise Alan Wilkinson, who oversees football concessions for MSU's Concessions Department. Wilkinson, a 1996 MSU graduate, said students don't buy stadium concessions.

"They don't buy; they don't purchase," Wilkinson said. "They get their fill outside (the stadium), I imagine, most of them."

Fans in general seating, on the other hand, generated more than 61 percent of the trash in the sample while occupying just 52 percent of
the stadium's seats. Fans in the lower bowl were much messier than
those in the upper deck, generating 53 percent of the trash while
occupying about 37 percent of the seats.

Football fans generated 2,400 cubic yards of trash during the 2004 season - enough trash to send the average homeowner to the curb more than 16,000 times. Photo by Patty Mallett.

That may be because it's easier for lower-bowl fans to get to concession stands.

"We just don't have the stands to service the people (in the upper deck)," Wilkinson said. "We only have three stands to service the entire area ."

Fans in Stadium Club seating - the most expensive seats in the stadium, requiring both a $228 season ticket and an annual "gift" to the university
of $1,500 - generated about 12 percent of the trash in the sample. This
was neatly proportionate to their share of stadium seating - also about 12 percent.

MSU football fans generated about 2,400 cubic yards of trash - both inside and outside the stadium - during the 2004 season. That's enough trash to send the average homeowner to the curb more than 16,000 times.

Forum: What do you think?

Alan Wilkinson, MSU Concessions
Department.