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Friday, December 2, 2011

Engage your classroom - be a showcase school

The students of Samual W. Shaw school are tired of seeing garbage pile up at City landfills, and they're doing something about it.

Every day, 23 fifth and sixth graders, roll up their sleeves and collect food waste, paper towels, napkins, and paper plates from the lunchroom, foods lab, staff room and snack shack and put it into compostable bags.

This organic waste material is then shoved into green tote bins and taken to an industrial site near Okotoks where the organic material is biologically processed into fertilizer.

The student volunteers have also been educating other students at the school on the benefit of composting through video presentations and interactive learning activities.

They teach their peers that one benefit of the program is reducing the amount of organic waste that goes to the landfill. A second is that it also reduces the amount of harmful methane gas that is produced when organic waste is buried and cannot decompose properly.

Samual W. Shaw was a 2011 Showcase School for Calgary’s Mayor’s Environment Expo – and The City of Calgary is inviting teachers to showcase their school at the 2012 Mayor’s Environment Expo in June.

The 2012 Mayor’s Environment Expo takes place June 5-7 at the Municipal Building.

All Showcase Schools qualify for a $250 grant from Encana to help with their projects.  Free transportation to and from the Expo is provided by Calgary Transit.

Register your school today and celebrate environmental stewardship!  Go to calgary.ca/mee

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