Published 1 June 2018

Wellington schools can now get help to empower kids to recycle and reduce the waste schools send to landfills.

Sustainability Trust, in partnership with Enviroschools, is rolling out YSS launched today by Associate Environment Minister Eugenie Sage. This is a programme to reduce the waste produced in primary and intermediate schools and improve school recycling.

“Schools send a lot of waste to landfill. Wellington schools can generate up to one ton of waste every week, little of which is reused or recycled."

“As well as making recycling easier for schools by having good waste and recycling bins, signage and servicing in place, we will empower kids and the rest of the school community to drastically reduce the waste they produce and send to landfill”, says Phil Squire, Sustainability Trust CE.

Sustainability Trust will firstly review a school’s waste and recycling infrastructure. Schools will then be supported to make changes in their sourcing of products, waste and recycling systems. Sustainability Trust has worked with Enviroschools to provide learning opportunities to school students (linking with the New Zealand school curriculum), so students actively use the new waste system in their school.

The programme is available to all primary and intermediate schools in the Wellington region — not just current Enviroschools. Acknowledging teachers are busy, the programme is easy to implement. It will include aspects of tikanga Māori. It will encourage good recycling and waste behaviour beyond the school — endeavouring to influence whānau behaviour as well.

A total of 45 schools in the Wellington region have the opportunity to participate.

Sustainability Trust has received close to $160,000 over two years from the Government’s Waste Minimisation Fund for the programme.