Schools earn cash to help reduce waste

  • $92,925 for Waste Wise Schools across the State
  • Program teaches students the three Rs – reduce, reuse, recycle 
  • A total of 30 Western Australian schools have received more than $90,000 for projects that reduce the amount of waste disposed of to landfill.

    Environment Minister Stephen Dawson today announced the grants to seven regional and 23 metropolitan schools accredited under the Waste Wise Schools program.

    The money will be spent on a range of sustainable waste projects at schools – from kitchen gardens, worm farms, recycling bins and composters to garden tools and chickens.

    Lakelands Primary School in Mandurah will receive $11,938 to set up a waste wise outdoor classroom with a shed and mini greenhouse to facilitate composting and growing seedlings.

    Madeley Primary School will spend its $8,800 grant on its reducing waste to landfill project – setting up an outdoor classroom, recycling station and a trailer to take recyclables to Tamala Park Recycling Centre. They will also buy Green Team vests and signage to make recycling easy.

    More than 200,000 children attend 454 accredited Waste Wise Schools across WA. The program delivers educational resources aimed at changing behaviour to avoid the generation of waste and encourage diverting waste from landfill.

    Last year, WA Waste Wise Schools recycled almost 200,000 kilograms of paper and diverted nearly 90,000 kilograms of fruit and vegetable scraps from landfill through worm farming and composting. Accredited schools also recycle batteries, mobile phones, ink cartridges, coffee pods and toothbrushes.

    The Waste Wise Schools program is funded by the State Government through the Waste Avoidance and Resource Recovery Account, administered by the Waste Authority.

    Applications for the next Waste Wise Schools grants round will be open from today (December 7) to March 1, 2019. For more information on the program or to become accredited, visit the Waste Authority website.

    As stated by Environment Minister Stephen Dawson:

    “Western Australian schoolchildren are setting a fantastic example through their culture of reduce, reuse, recycle.

    “Students at Waste Wise Schools show an impressive commitment to changing their behaviour to avoid waste and minimise the amount that ends up in landfill.

    “They then take this sustainable behaviour home and share it with their parents, siblings and friends.

    “We all have a responsibility to do the right thing and adopt smarter waste management practices at home, at work and at school.

    “This Government has already committed to a number of strategic waste reforms including banning lightweight plastic bags and introducing a container deposit scheme.”

    /Public Release. View in full here.