Loyola implemented new smoking restrictions Thursday in correspondence with the 33rd annual Great American Smokeout. The university administration and the Student Governement Association developed the policy in hopes of reducing smoking on campus.

“There is a national movement for a smoke-free campus … and (it’s especially important) because Loyola has above the regional average of smokers on campus,” said Cade Cypriano, political science senior and SGA president.

The new policy has designated 10 smoking areas on campus that are marked by green signs. Six of those areas are on the main campus, while the other four are on the Broadway campus.

Cypriano noted that, including Loyola, only 18 campuses nationwide permit smoking. The new policy serves as a transitory period to allow students to adjust.

“For those people who already smoke, it’s a middle ground,” he said.

According to a school-wide e-mail from Kevin Wildes, S.J., university president, “The use of the smoking areas will make the campus grounds cleaner, easier for our WFF employees to maintain and will ultimately protect the global environment – as smoking waste is not biodegradable or recyclable.”

The original proposal included the possibility of fines to enforce the new policy. The idea was overturned during discussions between Wildes and SGA.

Wildes said that “encouraging, supporting and challenging” students to build a more smoke-free campus was preferable over imposing fines.

Overall, Cypriano believes that the policy will help Loyola become smoke-free.

“We’ve received a lot of affirmations from non-smoking students, as well as faculty,” he said. “As for smoking students, we’ll have to gauge that to see if we have to modify it.”