We’re a Green School !

We’re a Green School !

We were presented with our first Green flag on

11th April 2000

Well done!

What did we do to become a Green School?

Our lunches went ‘green’, healthy and packaging free!

We began recycling…paper, stamps, cardboard, computer cartridges, envelopes, cans….and composting!

Big class bins ‘disappeared’ and we got small buckets instead!

We reduced our weekly rubbish by 12 bags!!!

Litter teams got busy collecting litter every day!

Mmmmmm…mighty!

…But that’s not all… We cleaned up our local pitches We planted bulbs and trees in

Terryland forest park We planted trees and bulbs in our

school grounds We take part in ‘National Spring

Clean’, Energy Awareness Week, and Tree Week every year

We have ‘Green Days’ at school

Braaaaaaavo!

SO…on 12th February 2002…

…we got our SECOND green flag!!!

Hi Don!

BUT we didn’t stop there! We kept up all these things! We improved on our litter picking, waste

reduction, recycling, reusing and energy saving!

We planted hundreds of bulbs, wild flowers and over 600 trees in our school grounds!

We painted two mini-beasts murals! We began to take part in the City Council’s

anti-litter calendar competition and car free day every year.

And then….

In April 2004 the Mayor of Galway, Terry O’Flaherty,

presented us with our THIRD green flag!

Yahoo!

BUT, you guessed it, we still didn’t stop!

We kept up all our ‘green’ work! We monitored what was going on and tried

to keep improving! We finished our murals & got logs from a

felled tree to make a nice seating area. We hung window boxes, planted more

bulbs, and raised money for yard games!

And in February 2006… …two members of the Green

School’s committee travelled to Dublin to be presented with our FOURTH green flag by Senator David Norris!

BUT…

Why do we bother???

Why do we recycle?

It saves natural resources…like trees and oil

It saves energy…and that saves money!

Recycling creates less pollution so it keeps our air and water cleaner!

If we recycle more we won’t need big dumps!

Did you know…

…recycling ONE glass jar saves enough

energy to light a bulb for 4 HOURS!!!

Why reduce waste?

…what do you think??? AND waste disposal costs money!

Did you know…

Before you were toilet trained YOU

used 5000 disposable nappies!!!

Why save energy?

It spares our natural resources

It reduces the harmful gases, which damage the ozone layer

It saves you money!

Did you know…

When your TV is on ‘standby’ it’s still using HALF

as much electricity aswhen it’s turned on!!!

So switch it off dude..!

What do we use energy for in school??

Lighting

Heating and hot water

Appliances

Where does energy come from??

The SUN…

….give energy to PLANTS to grow.

Plants die, decay and over millions of years form FOSSIL FUELS…

…which we use to produce HEAT and ELECTRICITY

BUT… …burning these fuels causes

CARBON DIOXIDE to be released into the atmosphere which will cause our climate to change and will effect our weather, our sea levels and the survival of many of the worlds animal and plant species

What can we do??? We can start by trying to SAVE

ENERGY in school and at home We can try to use RENEWABLE

sources of energy….can you think of any??

(HINT; these are ways of producing energy without using fossil fuels)

How many did you think of??

Did you know….

If everyone in Europe turned off the standby lights on their

TV’s it would save the equivalent amount of power

as is produced by a PowerStation as big as

Moneypoint in Co. Clare! (The biggest electricity generating

PowerStation in Ireland!)

Why conserve water?

“Sure, there’s no shortage of water in Ireland!”

It costs MONEY to purify our water!

Purifying water uses energy!

We waste more water in Ireland than any other country in Europe!

Did you know…

You can save water when you flushby putting a bottle (filled withwater) in the cistern of your

toilet!

Why reduce litter?

Our community would LOOK much better

Litter harms animals, birds and fish

No one wants to visit a DUMP!!

So POCKET IT, DON’T DROP IT!!

Did you know…

Hedgehogs in England are getting their heads

stuck in thrown awayMcFlurry lids

and often choke anddie…Save me!

http://www.foodservice.com/news_homepage_expandtitle_fromhome.cfm?passid=947

Visit this website and find out more!

So what on EARTH can YOU do???

Bring your own bag to the shop and DON’T take a bag for one or two small things

Don’t leave the tap running when you’re washing your teeth

Fix leaking taps Don’t buy things with a lot of packaging,

especially at Easter and Christmas Put a lagging jacket on your hot water tank Take a shower instead of a bath Walk on short trips instead of taking the car Take a bus or share a lift when possible

Dry clothes outside

Use energy saving light bulbsDON’T LITTER! POCKET IT-DON’T DROP IT!!

Collect rain water to water your garden

Use up all biros!

Have a compost heap in your garden

Reuse envelopes

Don’t boil a full kettle for one cup

Turn off the TV standby light

SPREAD THE WORD!!!

If YOU don’t make a difference…

WHO WILL???