Woodward School reduces garbage by 95% - an environmental success story!!!

Last year Environment Hamilton’s North Hamilton project staff visited the Woodward Elementary School staff to brainstorm how Environment Hamilton (EH) could contribute to the Woodward’s environmental curriculum. The school is deep in the city’s industrial core, a stone’s throw from the sewage treatment plant. Teachers wanted to introduce a “litter-less lunch” program. EH staff organized a fundraising drive within the surrounding industrial community and collected over $2,000 to purchase a “litter-less lunch kit” for each child – a canvas bag, containers for sandwiches, juice and of course snacks. We also arranged tours for the students to visit the city landfill site and both the composting and recycling depots, to educate the students on why they needed to reduce their garbage. The results were dramatic. This school used to generate 40 bags of garbage in the lunch room and 50 garbage bags in the classrooms per month. Today only 4 garbage bags are generated in the entire school per month. The caretaker told EH staff that his job seems easier because the amount of waste is almost nothing and the older students oversee the recycling and composting making sure the right items are placed in the correct bin. Students are coming in on a daily basis telling the staff that their families did not put out any garbage that week. It appears that the teachings at school are being transferred to the homes. Woodward also printed an environmental newsletter that contained recipes for nutritious snacks. Other articles pointed out the cost savings of drinking boxes and making your own juice. Reports indicate that the average family with two children in the school is saving over $100 per month making their children’s lunches rather than buying drinking boxes, lunchables, fruit roll ups etc. The waste reduction program has not been without its administrative challenges. Although Woodward staff introduced a green cart in the lunch room, there was no compost pick up at this location. Staff was voluntarily taking the brown bags home in their trunk of their cars. The Board of Education also provides only limited recycling opportunities so again staff was taking the extra items home with them to put in their own blue boxes. EH invited the head of the city’s Public Works division to visit Woodward School, meet the staff and hear about the successful “litter-less lunch” program. In response, Scott Stewart offered free city pickup of the school’s compost as well as the extra recycling material not currently offered through the Board of Education’s recycling program. Mr. Stewart also offered to send his staff to Woodward to initiate a beautification program for the school yard/ city park that surrounds the school area. He calls Woodward School his champion pilot project. The success at Woodward has generated requests for EH staff to visit other schools to introduce this program, but that is also presenting administrative challenges. The city was unsuccessful in their bid for the Board of Education’s waste and recycling pick up. The winning contractor doesn’t recycle glass, drinking boxes or styrofoam and the Board hasn’t adopted the green cart initiative citing health and labour issues. Although Woodward’s project can continue, other potential schools may have to be put on hold. EH has since met with the staff of the waste division at the Board of Education who seems to be trying to catch up with today’s standards of recycling. EH was assured that we can expand our program but composting and extended recycling will have to be looked at with each new school. Recently however, the Board had a roundtable meeting with environmental reps from across the area, enthusiastically listening to ideas on how to make improvements, and committed to seeing change happen. Currently Woodward Elementary School is the shining star amongst the rest of all schools and deserves a standing ovation for the leadership and enthusiasm displayed in both the staff and students who want to make their neighbourhood and community a better place to live. Woodward School has a number of windows in the gymnasium that have been boarded up. As part of the beautification project a grade 5 teacher and her class painted murals to replace the humdrum looking boards. The murals on the outside of the building have changed the look of this school. Visitors comment on how wonderful it looks as well as the neighbours. This same staff member painted 3 portables. Each portable has a different theme. One theme is a forest, one an ocean and the other is a garden. Each child was given paints and encouraged to paint a creature or plant that could be found in each setting. The portables are breathtakingly beautiful and not surprisingly no vandalism was reported when the students returned this September. Since the students painted the portables themselves, they have taken ownership of them including protecting them. Now in its third year, the EH North Hamilton project is funded by the Hamilton Community Foundation, and works with numerous communities to help them tackle environmental issues that the see as important to their neighbourhoods. EH program shows how to cut waste by 95 percent, save families big dollars, and revitalize an inner city school and neighbourhood. For more information contact Environment Hamilton at 905-549-0900