School Waste Management
In Term 3 and Term 4, Year 6 were concerned about the waste going into our landfill bins. With the help of Mrs Welch and Mrs Briscoe, we conducted an audit of our rubbish. Categorising the waste in five different groups, the results were shown that soft plastics was overwhelmingly the highest amount of rubbish in our landfill bins. This lead Year 6 to take action and a new bin was purchased specifically for soft plastics.
What are soft plastics?
Soft plastics are a flexible plastic that can be scrunched into a ball or broken by hand. Examples of these are:
Chip packets, cracker packets, chocolate and muesli bar wrappers, jelly stick and iceblock packaging, yoghurt and custard squeeze pouches and clingwrap.
What do we do with soft plastics at school?
At our last assembly, Year 6 informed students, staff and parents about the waste management and recycling system operating in the school. At recess and lunch, the environmental team place 3 small bins in the middle of the playground - the soft plastics, Vinnies Return and Earn Bin and a small landfill bin.
While students are eating, teachers and the team are reminding students about where their rubbish should be placed. These bins have signage and examples of the type of rubbish that is to be thrown into the bin. This is an effective way of assisting our younger students so that waste is recycled effectively.
At the end of the week soft plastics are collected into a bag and taken to Coles to be deposited into the Redcycle recycling bin. All the soft plastics in the bin are taken to a place where they can be processed into making different products and materials which can be used for things likes park benches and decking.
What can we do as a school community?
IT IS TIME TO MAKE A CHANGE !
The world is polluting over 300 million tons of plastic into the ocean every year. This is not only harming the environment and ocean but the wildlife and people.
One way we can help eliminate this environmental issue is to change your shopping purchases. Instead of buying packaged items and putting them into your child’s lunch boxes, put them in nude food containers. Please help us REDUCE the amount of soft plastics we are accumulating at our school.
Mrs Briscoe