KEYSER — Representatives of Keyser High School’s Going Green Club and Frankfort High School’s Green Team updated the Mineral County Board of Education Tuesday on their efforts toward promoting recycling throughout the county.
“We are so fortunate to have two dedicated teachers in the county school system who have helped us with this program,” Mineral County Commissioner Janice LaRue said.
Tabby Woy advises the Going Green Club at KHS and John Ritchie advises the Green Team at FHS.
LaRue, who is also a member of the Mineral County Litter Control and Recycling Committee, has been working with both groups at the schools to establish a recycling program in the county.
Last year, the committee was able to secure a $3,000 grant from the state REAP (Rehabilitation Environmental Action Plan) program, and that money was split between the schools. Frankfort used their share to fund a glossy brochure designed by the Frankfort Green Team and featuring information from both schools' recycling programs.
Tuesday, LaRue presented the board members with a copy of the brochure, and received permission to distribute them to each of the county's schools so the children may take them home to their parents.
In addition, ATK and NewPage each donated $500 which will be split between the two schools for their phonebook recycling program.
Used phone books will be accepted at KHS and FHS until April 30, with the schools competing to see which one can collect the most. The school with the top amount will receive a prize.
Luke McKenzie, president of Keyser's Going Green Club, then presented a Powerpoint presentation on the various activities of the club, including the phone book collection, a plastic bag and lightbulb exchange, and Adopt-A-Highway.
“We pick up trash along two miles of Pine Swamp and all of Tornado Way. Each semester, we do approximately two pick-ups,” he said.
He also noted that the plastic bag and lightbulb exchange, in which people may trade a plastic bag or old lightbulb for a recyclable bag or energy-efficient lightbulb, receives assistance from Keyser Wal-Mart.
With education being one of the top goals of both green groups, McKenzie said the KHS students have presented
programs at Keyser Primary-Middle School, Westernport Elementary, Energy Express, and Potomac State College.
KHS student Mysti Stansberry then presented a Powerpoint on the importance of recycling.
Mentioning that there are many items which people don't realize can be recycled, she listed athletic shoes, techno trash, computers, mattresses, cell phones and other hand-held devices, dry cleaning hangers, and soiled glass.
Many people also do not realize how long some items take to break down if they are discarded in a landfill: 80-100 years for an aluminum can; up to 700 years for plastic; approximately 4,000 years for glass.
Ritchie noted that the Frankfort groups have also been busy spreading the word about recycling to various other groups, including the West Virginia Environmental Education Conference, as well as the local Fort Ashby and Wiley Ford primary schools and Frankfort Intermediate School.
They have also been honored for their efforts — receiving the first place Recycling Education and Awareness Award from the West Virginia Youth Environmental Program and first place Environmental Achievement Award from the West Virginia Youth Environmental Program.
Soon, the Green Team will be packing trees to be given to elementary students for Arbor day. According to Ritchie, the Soil Conservation Service supplies the trees and materials, and the Frankfort students will be packing them and taking them to the younger students to take home and plant.
He admits some of the work hasn't been easy.
“It takes a passion; it takes a lot of hard work, and it takes mental energy,” he said. “It’s also very difficult to ask people to recycle in Mineral County because there's no place to take it.”
The closest recycler which Frankfort has been able to work with is located in Paw Paw.
Board president Terry LaRue praised the two schools for their efforts toward promoting a recycling program.
“The board would like to see all the schools get involved in recycling,” he said.
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KEYSER — Representatives of Keyser High School’s Going Green Club and Frankfort High School’s Green Team updated the Mineral County Board of Education Tuesday on their efforts toward promoting recycling throughout the county.
“We are so fortunate to have two dedicated teachers in the county school system who have helped us with this program,” Mineral County Commissioner Janice LaRue said.
Tabby Woy advises the Going Green Club at KHS and John Ritchie advises the Green Team at FHS.
LaRue, who is also a member of the Mineral County Litter Control and Recycling Committee, has been working with both groups at the schools to establish a recycling program in the county.
Last year, the committee was able to secure a $3,000 grant from the state REAP (Rehabilitation Environmental Action Plan) program, and that money was split between the schools. Frankfort used their share to fund a glossy brochure designed by the Frankfort Green Team and featuring information from both schools' recycling programs.
Tuesday, LaRue presented the board members with a copy of the brochure, and received permission to distribute them to each of the county's schools so the children may take them home to their parents.
In addition, ATK and NewPage each donated $500 which will be split between the two schools for their phonebook recycling program.
Used phone books will be accepted at KHS and FHS until April 30, with the schools competing to see which one can collect the most. The school with the top amount will receive a prize.
Luke McKenzie, president of Keyser's Going Green Club, then presented a Powerpoint presentation on the various activities of the club, including the phone book collection, a plastic bag and lightbulb exchange, and Adopt-A-Highway.
“We pick up trash along two miles of Pine Swamp and all of Tornado Way. Each semester, we do approximately two pick-ups,” he said.
He also noted that the plastic bag and lightbulb exchange, in which people may trade a plastic bag or old lightbulb for a recyclable bag or energy-efficient lightbulb, receives assistance from Keyser Wal-Mart.
With education being one of the top goals of both green groups, McKenzie said the KHS students have presented
programs at Keyser Primary-Middle School, Westernport Elementary, Energy Express, and Potomac State College.
KHS student Mysti Stansberry then presented a Powerpoint on the importance of recycling.
Mentioning that there are many items which people don't realize can be recycled, she listed athletic shoes, techno trash, computers, mattresses, cell phones and other hand-held devices, dry cleaning hangers, and soiled glass.
Many people also do not realize how long some items take to break down if they are discarded in a landfill: 80-100 years for an aluminum can; up to 700 years for plastic; approximately 4,000 years for glass.
Ritchie noted that the Frankfort groups have also been busy spreading the word about recycling to various other groups, including the West Virginia Environmental Education Conference, as well as the local Fort Ashby and Wiley Ford primary schools and Frankfort Intermediate School.
They have also been honored for their efforts — receiving the first place Recycling Education and Awareness Award from the West Virginia Youth Environmental Program and first place Environmental Achievement Award from the West Virginia Youth Environmental Program.
Soon, the Green Team will be packing trees to be given to elementary students for Arbor day. According to Ritchie, the Soil Conservation Service supplies the trees and materials, and the Frankfort students will be packing them and taking them to the younger students to take home and plant.
He admits some of the work hasn't been easy.
“It takes a passion; it takes a lot of hard work, and it takes mental energy,” he said. “It’s also very difficult to ask people to recycle in Mineral County because there's no place to take it.”
The closest recycler which Frankfort has been able to work with is located in Paw Paw.
Board president Terry LaRue praised the two schools for their efforts toward promoting a recycling program.
“The board would like to see all the schools get involved in recycling,” he said.
