DOWNEY : Schools’ Recycling Plan Saving District Money
The Downey Unified School District has added a fourth “R” to its curriculum: Recycling.
Separating recyclable materials from trash has become so routine for students, teachers and administrators that the district is recycling about 65% of its waste, officials said. By comparison, the citywide recycling rate is about 25%.
Almost every classroom has containers for recycled trash, said Jean Hardy, the district’s purchasing director, who launched the program in 1991.
Downey Unified collects newsprint, mixed paper, cans, cardboard, foam and other materials. Hardy said she soon hopes to start recycling plant trimmings and other “green waste.”
The program has also helped lower the district’s trash bill to about $58,000 a year from $100,000 four years ago, Hardy said. The bill is based on the amount of trash that haulers collect.
The recycling effort “is a way for us to become responsible citizens of the city,” Hardy said.
Downey and other cities are required by state law to recycle 25% of their trash this year and 50% by 2000.
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