A survey of the drinking habits of Chico State University students says almost all of them drink and a vast majority drink a lot.

But even given that, the researchers believe there are some hints things might be changing.

According to the survey that was conducted during the last academic year, 91 percent of the 1,319 students polled said they had consumed alcohol in the last year, and just under 84 percent reported drinking in the previous 30 days.

Students reported drinking an average of nearly 812 drinks a week.

Binge drinking, which is officially referred to as "high risk" drinking, is defined as consuming five or more drinks at a single sitting.

Using that definition, 60 percent of the students polled reported binge drinking at least once in the two weeks prior to being surveyed, and 34 percent said they had binged three or more times in the previous two weeks.

In the face of what certainly looks like grim news, Walt Schafer, who is one of the lead researchers in a related survey that focused on freshman drinking behavior, said there are hints booze consumption may be slipping.

Schafer, a professor emeritus in sociology, said, "In the campus as a whole, we are not seeing positive effects in our efforts (to discourage alcohol abuse)."

However, among freshmen there have been "modest reductions" in frequency and the amount of alcohol being consumed.

For the last two years, Schafer has headed a federally funded study of the drinking habits of Chico State freshmen.

On a regular basis over the 2001-2002 and the 2002-2003 academic years, survey teams interviewed freshmen students on weekend evenings and then the students were given breath tests to check their blood alcohol levels.

In the first year of the study, which was funded to the tune of $276,590 by the U.S. Department of Education, 80 percent of the freshmen said they had consumed alcohol that day, but this past year that number slipped to 72 percent.

During the 2001-2002 survey, 65 percent said they had consumed five or more drinks the day they were interviewed, and the following year the number of self-identified binge drinkers had fallen to 44 percent.

Again in that first year, 32 percent of the students tested had a blood alcohol level of 0.10 or higher. In California, 0.08 is considered legally drunk when it comes to driving. The number of students with a 0.10 blood alcohol level dropped to 23 percent this past academic year.

Also, the average blood alcohol levels dropped from 0.07 to 0.06 from the first year to the second.

For years, Chico State has officially conducted a range of campaigns aimed at reducing alcohol abuse among students.

In an interview with the Enterprise-Record Tuesday, Schafer said he is "encouraged" at the general trend in booze consumption among freshmen.

Shauna Quinn, director of Chico State's Campus Alcohol and Drug Education Center, called the changes in freshman drinking habits "significant," but she also said the survey data underscores the fact that drinking remains a serious problem.

"We have to continue to work and be diligent in continuing to work" on the campus anti-alcohol efforts, explained Quinn.

"This (alcohol abuse) is a serious health problem with young people, particularly in this age group," said Quinn.

Among all students at Chico State, the youngest students have traditionally been the heaviest drinkers, according to Schafer.

Another reason he is encouraged by the most recent survey data is, for the first time, this year's survey showed fewer freshmen were involved in binge drinking than sophomores.

The campus-wide survey covered illegal drugs as well as alcohol.

According to that aspect of the survey, more than 53 percent of those interviewed had used marijuana in the previous year, and nearly 37 percent had used the drug in the last 30 days.

Just under 20 percent of those interviewed reported using marijuana three or more times in the week previous to the time they were surveyed.

Among other drugs, 6.6 percent had used cocaine in the previous 30 days, 4.5 percent had used amphetamines during the period, and 2.3 percent reported using hallucinogens.