The Earth Corps - Updated 6/1/2008
TERRY HUSSEMAN SUSTAINABLE SCHOOLS AWARD: On March 22nd, 20 of our active members went to the Capitol Campus to receive our club's second (2003, 2008) Husseman award from the Department of Ecology. The award was presented by Jim Manning, Director of the Washington State Department of Ecology.
NATIVE PLANT LANDSCAPING: The native plant landscape that was installed in early March received its much needed weeding and mulching. The plants have grown quite well since they were planted, and after one year of occassional watering during this summer, will be well established and on their own. We expect that the birds and bees will appreciate the flowers and berries from several of the species, and the areas will eventually provide cover and shelter for several families of birds as the plants assimmilate carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Without a doubt, the landscaped areas are more attractive to look at than the concrete bricks and weedy dirt.
RECYCLING: The volume of material that we're recycling this year is so great that we're going to have to make some refinements to our collection and sorting strategies, and we'll need the cooperation of teachers and clubs. If not, we'll be victims of our success, and we won't have time to do anything but recycling. On the other hand, consider that 4 years ago there wasn't a recycling program at OHS, and now our school is #1 in that category thanks to the dedication of students who actually care about the health of the planet, and who realize that talk is cheap, and actions speak louder than words (pardon the double cliche, but it seemed appropriate). Perhaps we should change the name of our club and add a word like "action." That would really let people know that we get things done.
Club Highlights for 07/08:
This year, we were proud to add the following to our growing lists of accomplishments:
* The Terry Husseman Award (see above)
* Washington Federation for the Environment Grant (see update on grant project above)
* Seattle Metro Grant - Funds were used to subsidize the purchase of 200 32 ounce "Free Refills" water bottles. The bottles helped to raise awareness of the wasted resources and energy in the bottled water business.
* Meyers Point Project - For the 5th consecutive year, students worked with a plant scientist from Washington State University to renovate an old pasture overlooking Henderson inlet. Nearly 2000 trees have been planted, and thousands and thousands of invasive weeds removed in an effort to accelerate the succession of the hillside to the forest that will support wildlife and prevent erosion from damaging the shellfish beds in the inlet.
- Every Thursday 8-10 students go around after school and pick up recyclables from classrooms. Then, on about every 4th Saturday we come in and sort and bag the materials. The amount has quadrupled since we began 3 years ago. We have planted over 1000 trees at a sensitive habitat on Henderson inlet - and removed a lot of weeds in the the same area. This is in its 6th year.
- Our recycling volume has increased so much that we have to come in on Saturday morning at least once a month to do our sorting. The good news is that we're getting the school's recyclables out of the landfills and into the recycle stream. AND, our sorting efficiency is improving proportionally to the increased volume. The last session - with all 14 holding bins filled and bags of mixed materials piled on top - took less than 1.5 hours from start to finish. More improvements in efficiency will be made next year...stay tuned.
- Tree planting by hall four. The trees we planted in February '07 have now put on their second year of leaves and growth. They are so well established that we were able to remove the support posts and ties. I estimate their current height to be at least 15 feet. We paid for the trees ($1200 wholesale), installed them (that was a workout), and have taken care of them. They will soon be on their own.
- We've spent over $5,000 (and lots of hours) to renovate the pond area, and have added to that with our recent planting of 180 native plants. Many of the plants installed in the area in previous years are really taking off. It's hard to believe what can be done when the commitment is there. A trashy, weedy eyesore has been transformed into a beautiful park-like nature setting with a ring trail, 15 benches, nesting boxes for birds and bats, and enough species of native plants for students to actually study native plants.
While
our "Actions speak louder than words" approach to environmental
stewardship does not always get the attention it so obviously deserves,
we are nevertheless very proud of our tangible accomplishments.
We
cooperate with several environmental groups in the area, and work
cooperatively with other schools through the YMCA's Earth Service Corps.
We
have never received a penny from the district or ASB. Our money comes
from our own fundraising (tree planting at Henderson Inlet), some from
the waste contractor, and some from grants.