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Success Story: Sunny Hills Elementary School
School District: Issaquah
School Location: Sammamish
Began participating in the Green Schools Program: September 2010
Level One of the Green Schools Program: Achieved in May 2011
Waste Reduction and Recycling
- Sunny Hills Elementary increased its recycling rate from 29 percent to 47 percent through a school-wide program that includes classroom, office and lunchroom recycling.
- The school reduced its garbage pick-up from twice per week to once per week.
- With assistance from the City of Issaquah, the school launched a program to collect food scrap and other compostable materials in the lunchroom and staff lounge. The compostable materials are transported to Cedar Grove, a composting facility.
- The school formed a staff and student green team to conduct waste reduction and recycling education and outreach. Team activities included making and distributing recycling posters and giving presentations to classrooms and at staff meetings about lunchroom recycling and composting.
- To prepare for the new lunchroom composting, all teachers did an interactive review of composting with their classes, and one teacher gave lunchroom presentations.
- Green team and third grade students formed a “Waste Watchers” team to monitor during lunchtime and assist with the sorting of recyclable and compostable materials.
- The student council created scrap boxes for each classroom for the collection of paper used on only one side, to facilitate waste reduction and efficient use of paper.
- The student council gave presentations to teach their peers about recycling.
- Staff reduced paper use by eliminating paper newsletters and making double-sided copies.
- Along with all schools in the Issaquah School District, Sunny Hill’s lunchroom eliminated the use of straws and uses durable trays that are washed and reused. When it’s not possible to use durable trays, the lunchroom uses compostable paper trays instead of polystyrene trays.
- The school shared information about its conservation improvements in several of its monthly newsletters.
For more information about the school’s conservation achievements and participation in the Green Schools Program, contact:
Andrea Miller, PE specialist
millera2@issaquah.wednet.edu
John Macartney, resource conservation manager, Issaquah School District
johnmacartney@msn.com
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