NEWS: for Life event raises awareness for cancer ARTS & LIFE: Relay Page 3 day brings commercial perks to all VIEWS: Tax Page 6 Microsoft takes on iPhone Page 2
Untapped Potential Freshman poised to break school track record See Page 5
Thursday, April 15, 2010
News 1,2 Arts & Life 3,4 Sports 5 Views 6 Classifieds 7 Games 7
Volume 95 | Issue 47
Stormy 78° / 60°
ntdaily.com
The Student Newspaper of the University of North Texas
Winners on Display
Denton to receive ‘green’ funding BY A LEX CHEATHAM Staff Writer
PHOTO BY REBEKAH GOMEZ/PHOTOGRAPHER
A selection of 65 works from about 450 student entries can be viewed at the 50th Annual Voertman Student Art Competition. The exhibit will run from April 13 to May 1 at the UNT Art Gallery. “We hold the competition because it inspires young artists and acknowledges and rewards them for their hard work,” said Tracee Robertson, director of the UNT Art Gallery. To read the full story, visit ntdaily.com
Drunken drivers may face restrictions BY LISA GARZA
Senior Staff Writer The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is considering legislation that would require convicted drunken drivers nationwide to have an alcohol ignition lock installed in their vehicles. Ten states require ignition interlocks for everyone convicted of driving under the influence as a condition of probation. The locks are installed in Texas at the discretion of a judge, according to the Texas Transportation Code. “The simple reason that drunk drivers continue to drink and drive is because they can,” said Laura Dean-Mooney, the Mother’s Against Drunk Driving national president, in a testimony to the Senate. “Every American should be protected under an all-offender interlock law. It is the right thing to do.” Dean-Mooney said the organization is calling for federal highway money to be withheld from states that do not require interlocks for all convicted DUI offenders. The group believes this is a fair approach since Congress took a similar stance when the 21 minimum drinking age was introduced and the .08 national
PHOTO COURTESY OF JALOPNIK.COM
The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is considering legislation that would require convicted drunken drivers nationwide to have an alcohol ignition lock installed in their vehicles. legal limit was set, Dean-Mooney said. An alcohol ignition lock is a cell-phone sized electronic device that is attached to the vehicle’s ignition switch. When drivers blow into a tube attached to the lock, the alcohol level in their system is calculated. If it’s higher than a preset limit — usually the legal limit — the vehicle will not start. Depending on the model of the lock, the vehicle’s horn may honk or the lights may flash to alert nearby law enforcement officers, according to the National
Interlock Service Web site. At the hearing, Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., said he supports reducing the number of drunken driving accidents but not the proposed ultimatum. “What I oppose is a one-sizefits-all Washington solution to all the states,” Hope said. “A perfect example of this is the sanction approach, favored by some in this committee and some of the witnesses here today, that seek to withhold highway funds from states that do not enact specific laws.” Dean-Mooney cited statis-
tics to the Senate to illustrate what she said was “a startling portrait of what’s happening on our roads.” In Texas, 124,662 motorists are driving with three or more DUI convictions, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. In Denton, there have been 113 driving while intoxicated charges this year and six driving under the influence charges, said officer Ryan Grelle of the Denton Police Department. Grelle said ignition locks could be required for convicted offenders based on the judge’s review of their records. “If this is a first DWI charge, you probably would not be subject to that,” Grelle said. “Most of the time, if it’s a second offense or more, they’re going to put [the ignition lock] on there as part of your bond.” Amy Hurd, an interdisciplinary studies senior and volunteer for Safe Ride at UNT, said she supports the organization’s effort. “If anything, I think [students] might require us more,” Hurd said. “Those students who absolutely can’t drive don’t have another option but to call us.”
After a year of planning, the City Council approved the funding allocation for a $1.1 million grant to increase energy conser vat ion t hroughout Denton at a meeting Tuesday. Cit y Cou nci l ma n Ji m Engelbrecht said the grant is important because it provides added resources for energy conservation efforts. The projects are expected to save Denton more than 9.6 million kilowatt-hours each year — the equivalent of 805 fewer homes on the electrical grid. The measures should also cut greenhouse gas emissions by more than 21,000 tons. The grant is awarded by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program, which was created in 2009 as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. A consultant had to be hired to craft a conservation strategy according to the program’s requirements before most of the money could be approved. Last mont h, t he U.S. Department of Energy endorsed the city’s projects. The grants are a small part of the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which was passed last year by Congress to stimulate the diminishing economy. The grant will create 15 new jobs in Denton and will be responsible for providing the money for five energy conservation projects throughout the city. The money will also provide for a full-time employee to focus on energy saving measures. Renit Lebowitz, a psychology senior, said she likes the Council’s plan to increase sustainability. “Going green is such a typical term these days, but people need to realize that it’s really important,” Lebowitz said. “If everyone put in just a little effort, we could add to what the grant is already going to do and make Denton an even more sustainable place.” To meet the program’s goals, the projects had to focus on reducing energy use and cutting greenhouse emissions. “In the long run, this small amount of money will save residents so much more,” said Arianna Jezari, an anthropology senior. “If you increase the city’s sustainability by making things more efficient, everyone will see success.”
The five projects range from planning for environmental improvements to installing efficient upgrades, and each aims to increase Denton’s sustainability, Engelbrecht said. An initial amount of $65,000 was allocated for the city to pay for the development of a conservation strategy required by Congress. More than half a million dollars will be spent creating energy-efficient upgrades in Denton’s city buildings. Most of the upgrades will provide lighting retrofits for the municipal buildings by replacing older and less-efficient lighting with new technology that will use half as much energy. “The retrofits are estimated to pay themselves off in three to five years and save energy,” Engelbrecht said. A quarter of a million dollars will provide three years of pay for a full-time city worker to head up energy saving efforts. An additional $138,000 will hire a team of consultants to develop the second phase of a comprehensive sustainability plan. The city plans to develop two electricity-generating plants by using existing facilities and generator. The more than $123,400 project will trap methane at Denton’s landfill and wastewater treatment plant and convert it into electricity. “[The City Council] wants to continue to capture methane a nd i mprove s y stem s,” Engelbrecht said. “By doing this, it’s creating an alternate energy source that we can use in the place of natural gas. It’s already there, we just need to use it.” Denton Municipal Electric’s energ y audit program, a program designed to increase efficiency awareness, will purchase new equipment with $27,000 of grant money. Engelbrecht said that the equipment purchased for the audit program would allow Denton Municipal Electric to conduct more accurate energy audits in homes and businesses, making it easier for owners to make improvements and save energy in the long run. “This is just one step in a continuing process,” Engelbrecht said. “There is money allocated for the development of a second phase, and we will be continuing this process and furthering our efforts for efficiency [for a long time].”
Company repairs General Academic Building’s leaky walls BY DREW GAINES
Contributing Writer Mortar and chiseled brick have been raining down from the General Academic Building’s fourth floor for two months. On the ground, Jose Antonio chases the falling pieces and throws them away. It’s all part of repairing a leaky building, he says. Jo s e w o r k s f o r W S Weatherproofing Services, a company from the town of Cross Roads that is in charge of patching up the building. The company’s hydraulic lift and three-man-crew will orbit the fourth floor of the building for weeks to come as they replace aging brick and leaky weather flashing.
A heavy rainstorm last spring had Nanette Behning in the Jewish Studies Program offices rushing for a trashcan to collect water leaking from the windows. “It was a steady stream,” she said. According to Gary Place, a spokesman for the company, the building needed repair after unwanted moisture developed around the building’s fourth story windows. Jose and his squad arrive at about 7:30 every morning. Two of the men climb into the lift with a pressure washer, mortar, brick, new flashing and window washing material. They then winch themselves toward the desired destination: waist level to the professors
working inside their fourth-floor window offices. Once settled, they began chiseling away at the old wall, creating a flurry of litter that plummets to the ground. “This is a permanent fix,” Place said. The project is expected to take 45 working days, said Sharon Kirkpatrick, a Facility Maintenance project planner, but work has been delayed because of rain and cold temperatures. With that in mind, the work is expected to take another three weeks. The cost for the work on the General Academic Building has not been released and is pending completion of the work and contract, Kirkpatrick said.
PHOTO BY DREW GAINES/PHOTOGRAPHER
Jaime Parela (left) and Avel Dalaviz of WS Weatherproofing Construction repair leaky flashing and mortar outside of professor Richard Golden’s office on the fourth floor of the General Academic Building.