The possibility of a smoking ban has been a frequent discussion among many students ever since the University Benefits Advisory Council (UBAC) recommended a smoke-free campus in its June 2012 report.Many students have interpreted this recommendation as a ?smoking ban,? but Jan Carney, co-chair of UBAC, said this is not how the policy is intended to come across.?The goal is to have a University wide conversation about this as a health issue,? Carney said. ?I envision it would span two to three years and involve faculty, students and staff.?UBAC has budgeted $45,000 for the project over three years, she said.Aya Al-Namee, chair of SGA?s Committee on Diversity, Equity and Environmental Ethics said there is technically no such thing as a smoking ban.?It?s really hazy,? Al-Namee said. ?Nothing has been done on the ground.?Al-Namee reiterated Carney?s statements that the policy is intended to be a campaign focused on education and input from students. However, she said she understands students? concern. ?Students are freaked out because they think it?s a ban,? she said. ?They?re just worried, which I totally understand.?Al-Namee said that in her conversations with President Sullivan, they specifically discussed the fact that an all-out smoking ban on campus would be nearly impossible to enforce. ?Enforcing a policy of that sort would be very difficult on a campus like UVM?s,? she said. ?No one knows what it?s going to look like.?Although the UBCA?s project is focused on conversations about smoking, the goal is to have a smoke free campus within three years, Carney said.Year One: A focus on research and education. Year Two: UBAC hopes to finalize and propose an official revision to the University?s current smoking policies. Year Three: The University would become smoke free.Included in UBAC?s report are the findings from a survey conducted by nursing studentCallan Janowieck. The survey found that of the 20 percent of students who are occasional smokers, more than 26 percent began smoking while at UVM.The survey reported that over 70 percent of respondents said that they were ?bothered by tobacco use on campus.?Dr. Stacey Sigmon, a professor of psychiatry and psychology at UVM, noted the adverse effects of tobacco use and students? denial of those effects.?There?s often a gap between what we know and what we do,? she said. ?Smoking often gets started in social settings.?Even if smokers are aware of the consequences, Sigmon said such consequences are so delayed that the immediate reward of a cigarette is more desirable than avoiding possible health risks down the road.Caroline Kobetitsch is a first year and a former smoker who said peer pressure is one of the reasons she started smoking.Though Kobetitsch smoked rather infrequently, she still experienced withdrawal when she decided to quit.?When I stopped smoking I was really irritable for about three weeks,? she said. ?I didn?t really want to hang around my friends if they were smoking.?According to Sigmon, Kobetitsch?s smoking patterns are common.?[Social] factors can be really potent in maintaining the early behavior in using cigarettes, even if you don?t find it enjoyable,? Sigmon said. ?People continue to smoke early on because of its pairing with social reinforcement. After dependence sets in, behavior changes to prevent withdrawal.?In one of Sigmon?s studies, her patients receive financial compensation for providing evidence that they have stopped smoking. Sigmon suggested that this approach could be tailored to UVM students.?It seems like some of these [positive reinforcement] principles might be useful when considering a campus wide approach to tobacco use,? she said.UBAC?s recommendations came at the heels of a report from the United States Surgeon General in 2012. The report stated that while rates of smoking among young adults have decreased, the decline has slowed.The Surgeon General?s report showed that 88 percent of smokers tried their first cigarette before age 18, and 99 percent tried their first cigarette before age 26.?A proportion of that is on college campuses,? Carney said. ?It?s much easier to prevent people from starting to smoke than it is to get people to quit. A public health strategy is to do everything you can to prevent addiction in the first place.?First-year Ryan Jory said he started smoking in high school and smokes about five cigarettes a day. Jory said he does not like the direction the university is headed regarding smoking.?If I want to smoke, I should be able to smoke,? Jory said. ?We?re all adults here.?Though Jory is opposed to a smoking ban, he underscored the importance of education about the health risks of smoking.?People should be educated about smoking,? he said. ?People who don?t smoke shouldn?t start.?