KALB's Recycling Center and ASU partnered to provide recycling service at the latest Fiddler's Convention.  However, we could not have done it without a GREAT group of student volunteers from local high schools.  Athens High School student volunteers included Shelby Jenkins, William Mathews, Clint Holt, Joseph Carpenter, Meredith Nelson, Sarah Besh, Hannah Hartsfield, and Grace Martin.  Clements High School volunteers included Savannah Solomon, Madison Curnutt, Brooke Moore, Carley McGill, Kristin McGlockin, and Jasmine Magoon.  West Limestone volunteers were Jeremy Thrasher and Logan D. Collins.  East Limestone volunteers were organized by Teacher, Bonnie Jacques.
     These students helped with everything from sorting recycling to handing out litter bags.  They received a free pass to Fiddler's for the day of their volunteer service.  Thank you to these eco-minded students for all their help!

     KAB's Recycle Bowl is kicking off on October 21.  KALB automatically registers your school each year as a part of our Green Schools Program.  As part of your registration, you should have received a free toolkit sometime in early October, that includes activities and resources to educate your students about recycling. 

     Your school is competing with other schools for awards as follows:

     Johnson Elementary's newly formed Green Team students participated in a lesson on "Food Chain Tag" recently.  These fourth and fifth grade students saw what it was like to be a part of a functioning ecosystem when they role-played the part of different animals in a food chain.  They then learned ways that litter affects birds when the birds think that small pieces of litter is food.  They learned that putting trash in its proper place and recycling are two great ways to keep our ecosystem healthy.

    

This is an invitation for all schools in Limestone County to join others in the state for the Great American Can Roundup School Challenge and the opportunity for your school to win up to $6,000.  The Can Manufacturer's Institute (CMI) is offering $1,000 to the school in each state and District of Columbia that recycles the most aluminum cans per student enrollment.  The school that emerges as the national champion recycling school receives an additional $5,000.  Last year eight schools from Alabama competed with Holy Family Regional School from Huntsville which became the top state recycling school winning with 1,011 pounds for a per capita rate of 1.67 pounds per student.

Keep Athens-Limestone Beautiful will register your school and track your pounds per student.  All your school has to do is participate by promoting the event at your school and recycling cans.  If you participate, cans must be separated from bottles!   You have two options to recycle cans with us:

 

·  The Athens-Limestone Recycling Center (ALRC) can provide a blue outdoor recycling barrel (no wheels) to place cans in and we will service the barrels and take a 5 cents per pound commission off the can price before cutting a monthly check to your school  OR

 

·         A school representative can bring them to the ALRC and get the full can price for your school directly from Metal Exchange.  When your school representative comes, just have them drive around behind our building and through the gate to the scales.  When you bring cans to sell, you must tell Metal Exchange the name of your school so that you will get credit for the weights. 

 

BONUS Pizza Drawing:  To encourage you to recycle cans monthly, there will be monthly drawings for $50 pizza cards.  Drawings are held every month for those with weights turned in to CMI.  The ALRC will take care of posting your weights for you.  All you have to do is recycle!

Please visit www.cancentral/roundup  for curriculum ideas and other ways to promote the roundup.

IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER

Now to December 20, 2013 - Send me a courtesy e-mail me to let me know to register your school

November 15, 2013 to April 22, 2014 - Aluminum can contest period

22^nd of Dec, Jan, Feb, March, April - Dates I will submit report data for monthly $50 pizza gift card drawings

April 22, 2014 - last day to bring cans to the ALRC to count for the roundup

May 2014 - Winners will be notified

 

Please let me know to register your school!  

    It's not too late to register!  Each of you should have received an email invitation to participate in America Recycles Day. 

     Suggested school events include a recycling parade, a recycling pledge, and an e-waste collection event.  Even a proclamation is considered an event!

     If you didn't get an invitation, please let me know and I will get one out to you.  All you have to do is let me know you are having an event and I will get your school registered!

     Two hard-working lunchrooms were served breakfast by Keep Athens-Limestone Beautiful for rocking steel can recycling.

Athens Intermediate School lunchroom workers recycled 90 pounds of steel cans for the first nine weeks. Creekside Elementary School lunchroom workers recycled 290 pounds of steel cans.  They are in the running for the $200 grand prize at the end of the school year for the lunchroom that recycles the most steel cans per student.  Congratulations to these awesome recyclers! 

      A great tool for recycling success is a classroom recycling station.  A recycling station consists of a trash can and recycling bins for plastic/cans and paper.  No special boxes needed!  Just make sure your bins are labeled (KALB provides these) and that you have trained your students in how to use them. 

     KALB is sponsoring a "Kiss the Pig" contest.  Have your classroom collect plastic bottles, have students tally them each day, and turn them in to KALB at the end of each nine weeks.  The classroom at your school with the most recycling gets a Popcorn Party and a movie!  At the end of the school year, the classroom with the most recycling at your school gets Pizza and a Movie and their teacher has to "Kiss the Pig" for his/her students!

    Please register by emailing recycling1977@gmail.com to let me know that your school will be participating.  I will send you a tally form.