wasted time™ school waste and recycling audit · school waste and recycling audit congratulations...

SCHOOLWASTE ANDRECYCLINGAUDIT

WASTED TIME™

school waste andrecycling auditCongratulations on deciding to run a SUEZ school waste & recycling audit! You have just made a big step in helping to your school be more sustainable and reducing the amount of waste your school sends to landfillSchools produce a lot of waste, most of which can be recycled or composted. SUEZ’s WastEd Time™ School Waste & Recycling Audit booklet is a great tool to help students sort and classify waste, weigh and record results, report on their findings and develop strategies for reducing the overall amount of waste produced at school, as well as improving recycling and composting rates.

GETTING STARTEDBefore you begin, make sure you have all the following equipment

EQUIPMENT ~ Aprons*

~ Gloves*

~ Safety glasses (optional)*

~ Tongs or grabbers

~ Large rubbish bags

~ Tarpaulins or painters drop sheets

~ Rake and/or broom

~ Scales/Spring balance/Hanging scale (must be able to measure in 0.1kg increments between 100g and 20kg)

~ Clip boards and pens for recording

~ Felt tip marker for labelling bags

* For each participant

TEAMSWe recommend that you create teams of no less than eight (8) people. Assign four (4) people to hold the bags and four (4) people to do the sorting. Alternate the two (2) teams of four (4), so that each group gets to sort the waste. Each team should take charge of sorting one waste type – recycling, rubbish, clean paper & cardboard and dirty paper & food scraps – from each location.

SAFETY FIRSTIt is very important that you take some time to review these safety pointers. You don’t know what could be in the waste, so you should always take the following precautions:

The activity must be carried out in a sheltered, level area.

Make sure there is a teacher or other adult present during the entire activity.

Enclosed shoes must be worn during the entire activity.

Ensure that you wear the gloves provided during the entire activity.

Don't try to lift heavy bags or bin by yourself, always ask for help from the teacher.

Keep all waste on the tarpaulins/drop sheets.

Always work from the edges and use a rake or broom to move waste within reach.

Don’t step in, on or over the waste.

Don’t flick or throw the waste at other participants.

2 WASTED TIME™ School Waste & Recycling Audit

let’s begin!TO GET AN IDEA OF YOUR SCHOOL’S WASTE PROFILE, YOU WILL NEED TO COLLECT ONE DAY’S WORTH OF WASTE.

COLLECT THE WASTETo get an idea of your school’s waste profile, you need to collect one (1) day’s worth of waste. You could choose to collect waste from one or more of the following locations:

~ Playground rubbish

~ Playground recycling

~ Classroom rubbish

~ Classroom recycling

~ Canteen

~ Staffroom

Make sure you label where the waste has come from. Write down the locations and waste types on the Measuring and Recording Table (page 4).

SORTING THE WASTEMake sure the four (4) bags for each team are labelled:

~ Recycling

~ Rubbish

~ Clean paper & cardboard

~ Dirty paper & food scraps

The four (4) bag holders take charge of one of the labelled bags and each team takes charge of one waste type and sorts it into the four (4) waste material categories.

Note: Clean paper & cardboard include unstained paper lunch bags and writing paper. Stained lunch bags, tissues, or other dirty paper need to go in with the food scraps.

MEASURING AND RECORDINGAfter you have sorted out all the waste, weigh the bags and carefully record the weights in the Measuring and Recording Table (page 4).

Add up all the Recycling from each of the locations you have sorted and record it under ‘Recycling’ in the Grand Total box. Repeat this process for Rubbish, Clean Paper & Cardboard and Dirty Paper & Food Scraps.

Finally, add up all the weights in the Grand Total box for the total amount of waste you have sorted.

Follow the instructions in the booklet to calculate your total waste profile.

1 2 3

WASTED TIME™ School Waste & Recycling Audit 3

measuring and recordingWork with the other groups to find out how much waste was recorded in each category.

Location & waste type 1

Recycling Rubbish Clean paper & cardboard

Dirty paper and food scraps

Kg




Kg




Kg




Kg




Kg




Kg

GRAND TOTAL - TOTAL AMOUNT OF WASTE MEASUREDAdd up the amounts of waste for each category and record the grand total amount of waste sorted.



Total Waste (Kg)


reportingCreate a graph to show the amount of waste in each category. Colour in each column up the right weight.

If you have fractions of kilograms, estimate where the line will need to stop between the whole numbers.

EXTENSION ACTIVITYFor greater accuracy, you can make a table for each of the waste locations and use the data for targeted recycling and waste

10Kg

9Kg

8Kg

7Kg

6Kg

5Kg

4Kg

3Kg

2Kg

1Kg





What is the percentage of the total waste audited for each type of waste (waste type/total waste x 100)?

eg. total waste = 24kg food waste = 13kg

Create a visual representation of the percentages of waste generated in the school by using the pie chart.

The chart is divided into 10 segments, each segment represents 10%.

HINTChoose colours appropriate to the type of waste – eg. green for food, yellow for recyclable containers, red for non-recyclable/rubbish and blue for recyclable paper.

reporting

food waste 13 kg

total waste 24 kgx 100 = 54.16%


What is the most common type of waste in:

The school yard

The classroom

The staffroom

Can you think of any ways to reduce the amount of waste in each of these areas?

If there were recycling bins available, were there any contaminates (wrong materials) in the bin, and if so, what were they?

What are some of the problems which stop correct recycling/ waste management within the school?

What strategies could be used to improve the waste and recycling rates in the school?

As a class, come up with a plan to improve the use of waste and recycling bins within the school.

TELL US ABOUT IT!We would love to hear about your audit and results. We would also like to know if your school has made any changes to its waste and recycling program following the audit.

Our details are on the back page so please drop us a line!

analysis

take action

For more information about the in-schools program, facility tours, or booking procedures, please contact our Education Team:

Phone (02) 9826 3100 or

Email [email protected] Printed on 100% recycled paper

WHAT IS SUEZ’S WASTED TIME™ PROGRAM?

SUEZ Australia provides in-school recycling and waste education services to promote and enhance student understanding of the relationships between waste and the environment.

Through curriculum linked activities, tours and workshops, our fully qualified and experienced educators provide the tools to help students reduce, reuse and recycle their waste.

~ All education programs are FREE to eligible schools.

~ The program is delivered by experienced environmental educators.

~ Improves students’ awareness and understanding of the impacts of waste on the environment and their part in creating a more sustainable future.

~ All workshops are tailored to meet stage requirements.

~ All workshops can be adapted to fit into school time tables.

~ The program provides Fun and engaging hands on activities for students of all ages – and teachers might even learn something too!

~ Extension material is provided for follow-up activities in class.

~ Activities can be run in classrooms, halls or outdoors with sufficient room for unobstructed movement. Access to power is required for some modules.

wasted time™ school waste and recycling audit · school waste and recycling audit congratulations...

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