Waste Management presented a $10,000 check to Furman at the lake.  From left to right are Beverly Surma and Brock Stevens of Waste Managment, Furman biology professor Wade Worthen and vice president for academic affairs and dean Thomas Kazee.

      Furman unveiled plans in October 2006 to restore the lake’s environmental integrity and make it more attractive to visitors.  In the past year, the university has begun planting vegetation in the lake and on the surrounding border, naturalizing the streams that feed the lake and reducing the waterfowl population.

      “Waste Management is very pleased to assist Furman with its lake restoration,” said community relations manager Beverly Surma.  “Education and the environment are the company’s most important community priorities, and this project combines both of them in a novel way.  We’re really proud to have a role in enhancing the environmental quality and integrity of the lake.”

      Furman officials said the restoration of the lake will provide new educational opportunities for Furman students and faculty as well as local school and nature groups.  Other possibilities for a revitalized lake environment include educational signage, an upgraded picnic shelter, an observation deck extending into the lake and boardwalks near the wetlands.

      “When we declared last academic year to be the Year of the Environment at Furman, one of our primary objectives was to restore the lake to a more environmentally friendly and natural state,” said Furman president David E. Shi.  “We’re well are on our way to accomplishing that goal, and we are very grateful that Waste Management has made such a generous gift to the project.”

      Waste Management is the leading provider of comprehensive waste management services in North America, and owns and operates Spartanburg Hauling and Palmetto Landfill, both servicing the Greenville, S.C., area.

      For more information, contact Furman’s News and Media Relations office at 864-294-3107.

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