KEEP AMERICA BEAUTIFUL
ANNOUNCES NORTH CAROLINA SCHOOL RECYCLING CHAMPION: BONLEE
Keep America Beautiful, the nationÕs leading nonprofit
that brings people together to build and sustain vibrant communities, announced
the North Carolina winner of ÒRecycle-Bowl,Ó a comprehensive nationwide
recycling competition for elementary-, middle- and high-school students. Recycle-Bowl,
sponsored by NestlŽ Waters North America (NWNA), reached more than 900,000
students across America with schools in all 50 states and the District of
Columbia competing.
First place in North Carolina went to
Bonlee School where students recycled five pounds of waste per child, earning
$1,000 in prize money for the school. If all students in America recycled at
the rate of this yearÕs Recycle-Bowl competitors, approximately 2.4 million
tons of material would be diverted annually from landfills. That would be the
weight of 201,135 school buses.
Students were recognized at a special school-wide awards ceremony on
Tuesday, March 5.
ÒKeep America Beautiful
is pleased with the great momentum Recycle-Bowl achieved in its second year,
and our congratulations go out not just to Bonlee School, but to all the effort
of students, teachers and school administrators across America,Ó said Matt
McKenna, president and CEO of Keep America Beautiful. ÒRecycle-Bowl provides
teachers with a great opportunity to integrate math, science and sustainability
lessons into classroom curricula through experiential education as well as a
way to introduce recycling into a schoolÕs general operations.Ó
From October 15 through
November 9, 2012, participating schools recycled as much as possible. The total
amount of recyclables recovered during the 2012 competition added up to 4.5
million pounds, which in turn prevented the release of nearly 1,717 metric tons
of carbon equivalent (MTCE). In real-world terms, this reduction in greenhouse
gases is equivalent to the annual emissions from 334 passenger cars.
ÒThe Recycle-Bowl was a
great opportunity for our school to work together to reach for a goal that
involved learning and leadership and made a positive impact on the environment,Ó
said Laura Doherty.
This is NestlŽ Waters North America
second year as the lead corporate sponsor of Recycle-Bowl. ÒNestlŽ Waters North
America is delighted that Recycle-BowlÕs second year has achieved such
significant growth with a 25 percent increase in participating schools and
nearly 1 million students receiving further education about the importance of
recycling,Ó said Heidi Paul, vice president, corporate affairs, NWNA. ÒThe
increase in the number of schools using Recycle-Bowl as a way to start a school
recycling program demonstrates its value.Ó
Recycle-Bowl by the
Numbers:
á 1,577
schools registered
á 901,500
students participated in the competition.
á 4.5
million pounds of recyclables recovered
á On
average, 5.62 pounds of material were collected per person during the four
weeks of the competition.
A full list of winners
can be found at www.Recycle-Bowl.org. To sign up to receive updates for next
yearÕs competition, visit https://www.research.net/s/R-BInterest.
About Keep America
Beautiful
Keep America Beautiful is
the nationÕs leading nonprofit that brings people together to build and sustain
vibrant communities. With a network of more than 1,200 affiliate and
participating organizations including state recycling organizations, we work
with millions of volunteers to take action in their communities. Keep America
Beautiful offers solutions that create clean, beautiful public places, reduce
waste and increase recycling, generate positive impact on local economies and
inspire generations of environmental stewards. Through our programs and
public-private partnerships, we engage individuals to take greater
responsibility for improving their communityÕs environment. For more
information, visit kab.org.
About NestlŽ Waters North
America
With 35 years of
experience promoting healthful hydration in the bottled water segment, NestlŽ
Waters produces six regional spring water brands in the U.S., three
international brands, and NestlŽ Pure Life, its nationally distributed purified
bottled water. The company's dedication to quality, employee development,
community partnering, and its commitments to environmental stewardship,
especially in the areas of water use, energy and packaging, have led NestlŽ
Waters to the number one bottled water position in the U.S.
Submitted by:
Beth S. McCullough, Public Information Officer, Chatham
County Schools
beth@chatham.k12.nc.us (919)
542-3626