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Other Environmental Health Initiatives

Recycling

Description

While recycling is one of the easiest environmental initiatives to implement, most schools do not have a program in place. Schools can generate a large amount of waste, because of their numerous activities and large population. Paper recycling is an excellent start to a recycling program. It will have a positive impact on students and staff, as they will be more aware of recycling, and of the amount of paper that they actually use.

Background

When considering a recycling program, it is important to review the 3Rs of Conservation - reduce, reuse and recycle - and how they work together.

Reduce always comes first, because reducing what we use and what we waste means using fewer natural resources and less energy. Less waste also means less land put aside for burying waste in landfills. Ways to reduce waste include purchasing goods that use less packaging, sharing or renting things that are not needed regularly instead of buying them, and buying products that do not contain hazardous ingredients.

Reuse comes second, because reusing items - using them twice or many times instead of just once - keeps them from becoming waste. Some ideas for reuse include using glass or plastic jars after they are empty.

At school, many students bring their lunches in plastic containers, which they can wash and use over and over again, instead of wrapping their food in plastic and paper that they throw away every day. Other examples include businesses that have donated their old computers to schools for reuse, or local theatre companies that donate their used sets and costumes to school Drama Clubs.

Recycle comes third, but not last. Recycling - converting used items back into raw materials, then making new products with them - conserves our valuable natural resources and reduces the need to put as much waste into our landfills. Many schools have started recycling programs that help raise money for needed items. As well, when purchasing new materials look for products that are made from recycled materials.

What You Can Do

Contact your local Solid Waste Commission (SWC) to find out what services are available in your area. Some commissions can provide paper recycling boxes for each classroom and office, along with a large trolley to empty the boxes into. The trolley is then emptied on a regular basis by the commission. In some cases, this service is provided free of charge.

Inform staff members of the program, and introduce it to the students, either directly, or through the classroom teachers. It is important that information about the types of materials that can be recycled be posted near the boxes. This information is usually printed on the side of the box, or can be provided by the SWC.

When the boxes are in place, recycling will result over a period of time. Gradually, with ongoing promotion, the habit will be instilled as a natural way to dispose of waste paper.

In the Healthy School’s pilot school, it was found, that the only recycling of paper was done in the photocopy room. Being an elementary school, it was important to establish a program, because of the amounts of paper that could be recycled from the curriculum activities of the children, and because, if implemented in the early grades, the habit of recycling would be continued in future years.

By contacting the local Solid Waste Commission (SWC), it was found that there was, indeed, a program in place for schools, free of charge. The SWC asked for the number of boxes that were required. This included all classrooms and offices. The boxes were taken to the school and distributed to the appropriate areas, and a large trolley was placed in a convenient central location for the emptying of the classroom/office boxes. Every two weeks the SWC pick up the contents of the large trolley.

The program was at first slow to see results, but as students and teachers became familiar with having a recycling box in the classroom, their habits began to change. Now, paper recycling is a common practice.

Note: While paper recycling is one of the simplest programs to initiate, the recycling program can be easily expanded to other items, such as beverage containers, where the containers must be rinsed out before they are placed in the recycling bins. Some schools have gone as far as recycling some food wastes, through successful composting programs.

Resources and Links

New Brunswick Solid Waste Association
www.recyclenb.ca/regional_commissions.asp

NB Dept. of Env. & local Government
www.gnb.ca/0009/0002-e.asp