The students at Bexhill Public School have been busy getting their hands dirty, and have earned themselves $2000 for their efforts.
Bexhill are the 2011 winners of Lismore City Council’s Schools Waste Wise Challenge, a program that involves each participating school developing a portfolio which showcases the waste minimisation initiatives they have undertaken in their school throughout the year.
Lismore City Council’s Waste Education Officer, Danielle McAtee, said that this year’s competition was really tough for the judges, because all of the schools had put in so much effort.
‘This year we had eight local primary schools participating, and the quality of the portfolios has been magnificent. The students are getting more and more creative and have come up with some great ways to manage their waste,’ Ms McAtee said.
‘This program is a great way to get students and teachers thinking about the ways in which they can reduce the waste that they create and better manage the waste they have – whether it is through recycling their paper, worm farming their food scraps, or providing a collection point for battery recycling.
‘The initiatives these schools have put in place as part of the Wastewise Challenge can be carried on into the future, which is a really positive step for the environment.’
Bexhill have been deemed the worthy winners owing to their comprehensive portfolio and their ability to build upon the great initiatives they already had in place. For their efforts they have been awarded a $2000 cash prize to be spent on environmental initiatives within their school.
Bexhill were closely contested by runners-up Dunoon Public School who were awarded $500, and Lismore Heights Public School who came third and were awarded $250 in an awards ceremony today.
‘We would like to congratulate and thank all of the schools that participated in the Wastewise Challenge for their creative and well put together portfolios, and we look forward to working with them on their waste-management initiatives in the future,’ Ms McAtee said.
