Month in, Yard Official Says Smoking Ban Implementation Smooth

As of Aug. 15, smoking has been banned in Harvard Yard.

Over a month after Harvard banned the use of all forms of tobacco in the Yard, Harvard staff and students said that the implementation of the ban has been smooth, with its impact localized to a few areas.

According to Maureen McCarthy, manager of Harvard Yard and the freshman dormitories, the University has been enforcing the smoking ban similarly to the way it enforces the ban against biking through the Yard. Staff members, including members of Securitas and Yard Operations, approach smokers and ask them to either desist or leave the Yard.

McCarthy said she has not heard any reports about hostile or uncooperative responses from either students or tourists.

Were not really aggressively implementing it, but people slowly learn that its a policy, and they get the word out, she said.

Students interviewed around the Yard this week said that they were aware of the ban and pleased it is in place, though many also noted that they had not found issue with smokers in the Yard before the prohibition was put in place Aug. 15.

I think its probably a good thing, but its never been a problem, Caroline L. Ferguson 17, a Crimson sports editor, said of the ban. If I was around people smoking I think itd probably bother me, but I didnt notice before that it was [a problem].

According to McCarthy, although smokers in the Yard were not considered a huge issue before the ban, there were certain locations in the Yard that were popular for smokers. At locations such as Widener Gate, the steps of Lamont Library, and entryway D of Wigglesworth Hall, cigarette butts posed a cleanup problem for landscape maintenance staff members.

According to the University Department of Health Promotion and Education, the ban was put in place to ensure a safe, healthy environment for people to walk, study, be active, [and] engage with each other.

Student smokers interviewed for this story said that the ban has made smoking more inconvenient and prompted them to change where they smoke, but it has not promoted any broad lifestyle changes.

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Month in, Yard Official Says Smoking Ban Implementation Smooth