From February 2011:

With international calls to action and environmental conservation efforts increasing around the globe, the absence of Chamblee’s recycling program is especially apparent. 

Limited resources, including land utilized for landfills, and the impact that certain activities, such as burning waste, have on the environment have caused students and teachers to mobilize, hoping to attain essential recycling services for the school. 

While there have been many recent budget cuts in DeKalb County, one of the lesser known yet still important area that suffered was recycling. Recycling used to be free for Chamblee, costing the DeKalb County Board of Education roughly 40 dollars a week, but was cut altogether with the budget cuts.

 “Once you start recycling, you need a budget for a full year because you have to rent the dumpsters for a year,” Environmental Club sponsor Rebecca Marosy said. 

Although the county could not provide the nominal sum needed to continue recycling, efforts of Marosy and the Environmental Club’s president Michelle Lee have resulted in negotiations between Chamblee and SP Recycling Corporation, who will pay the school for recycling. 

“I have to draw up sketches of where the dumpsters will go, but hopefully we should have recycling back in the building in three weeks,” Marosy said. 

Recycling is not the only effort the Environmental Club is making to reduce waste in the environment; the club has gotten involved in the Clean Air Campaign as well. The campaign entails creating zones of cleaner air around the school by having ‘no idling zones’ to help with auto emissions around school campuses. 

“We would ask people participating in carpool to cut off their engines while they are waiting in line,” Marosy said. 

Efforts to recycle plastic grocery bags, broken cell phones, and ink cartridges have also been included in the Environmental Club’s accomplishments. Plans to turn eco-awareness into a celebration have also been discussed with regards to Earth Day.

“Small things done by a large number of people make a difference, so you have to retrain your habits; we make a small impact individually, but a large impact as a culture,” Marosy said.                   

Five Ways for Fellow Bulldogs to Do Their Part!

1. If you bring your lunch, put your food in reusable Tupperware instead of disposable zip-lock bags and substitute a lunch box for a brown paper bag or grocery bag.
2. Drink soda? Recycle your aluminum cans at any Atlanta fire station.
3. Use the backs of printed handouts for scratch paper instead of throwing it away.
4. Use only one or two paper towels to dry your hands after using the bathroom.
5. Join the recycling club!