At the beginning of the school year, staff and students noticed that aluminum cans and plastic bottle recycling bins were no longer present in many classrooms as they were before. In a school as large as OH, this removal of bins has the potential to make a significant impact on the environment.
“We noticed the can and plastic bottle bins were absent, and I did ask about that, and my understanding was [that] we don’t have the staffing to handle both sets of bins in every room all the time,” said Environmental Science teacher Zachary Horn.
OH provided no clear statement for the removal, and while Horn understands the school’s decision, he still encourages recycling at school.
“I understand the decision was made mainly from a lack of staffing, from budgets, and I understand where that comes from, but I feel like [recycling] is something we should prioritize a little more to help both the environment and set an example for kids and how they should be protecting the environment,” said Horn.
With a lack of cans and bottle recycling bins, students might feel it unnecessary to recycle them.
“I feel like [recycling at school] is very important, but because we have taken out part of our recycling initiative it’s become less normalized,” said OH junior Ava DeSanto.
According to a survey of 31 OH student responses, around 50% of students said they would hold on to a can or bottle until they recycle it in a can/bottle-recycling bin.
However, the other half said they would throw it in the trash, the wrong recycling bin, or whatever was convenient.
“I think that a lot of people aren’t made aware of the benefits of recycling, what it can do, and how much pollution there is in the world and why we need to recycle,” said OH senior Isabella Johnson.
The problem results in a lot of waste sourcing from OH. Resources that go into these cans are wasted, and we can’t get them back easily.
“We’ve got thousands and thousands of cans thrown out a week that now are getting thrown into a landfill instead of being recycled,” said Horn.
Though an abundance of nonrenewable minerals is trashed at school, it appears that people generally do understand the impact our actions have on the environment.
“I think recycling is pretty good. It can be definitely very helpful to the environment because a lot of things are made from recycled plastic,” said OH senior Spencer Beamish. “But I have heard a lot of recycling does actually just get thrown away.”
While recycling, students should always remember to place materials in their respective bins because bins with a mixture of cardboard, plastics, cans, and paper are often thrown away rather than reused.
“It seems like it’s an easy thing to throw away. It’s easy to cut costs, but long term if we’re pushing toward a society that’s sustainable… We’re going to have to really head towards a better recycling system,” said Horn.
I am a senior and this is my first year as a student journalist for 42Fifty. I currently play the trumpet in the OHS Marching Band and I am a member of BIONIC as well. I am excited for learning and gaining experience in journalism this year. You can contact me by emailing 42Fifty@sd308.org and putting my name in the subject line. We welcome comments on our articles and feedback on our publication!
