UCD COULD BE "forced to cover much of the campus green areas with tarmacadam" because of the increase in the number of students coming to college in cars, the college's official magazine has claimed.

UCD News says if the present 10 per cent per annum increase in car usage at Belfield is maintained "it is not impossible that the necessary extra car parking would make the campus look more like a shopping mall than [a] green oasis of learning . . ."

Traffic is one of three key environmental issues dealt with in a discussion document produced by the college's "Green Campus Committee". Other areas explored in the document are the conservation of buildings and natural areas and "the reduction of waste, energy and water flows".

The green-campus document recommends a system of cycle lanes throughout Belfield and raises the possibility of a "disincentive" to private vehicles on campus. UCD may look at the feasibility of developing a water supply for Belfield; it now pays "a substantial six-figure sum annually" for water.