By Philip Sean Curran, Staff Writer
Princeton University created a modified outdoor smoking ban by putting a 25-foot smoke-free buffer around university buildings and other facilities.
The change took effect this month, and seeks to balance the rights of smokers and nonsmokers alike. Smoking already is prohibited indoors.
But this aims to prevent second-hand outdoor smoke from entering buildings, yet at the same time leaving some room for smokers to light up.
Greg Cantrell, associate director of the school’s office of environmental health and safety, said Friday that the policy is “a good fit for the culture of Princeton University.”
According to the university website, smoking is prohibited within 25 feet of “academic, residential and administrative buildings“; “individual offices and rooms“; “athletic sporting facilities“; “spectator areas at outdoor university events“; university vehicles and shuttle buses; dinning facilities; performing arts venues; and “partially enclosed areas“ like archways and tents.
The change grew out of internal discussions at the university, but stopped short of a total ban on smoking or tobacco products on campus.
Karen Blumenfeld, executive director of New Jersey Global Advisers on Smokefree Policy, an anti-smoking organization, said Friday that Princeton had taken a good first step. But she said the school should go smoke-free as more than 1,500 colleges around the country have done.
