As a community we are trying to raise a million dollars over the next few years
for local schools by recycling aluminum cans. Participating schools will receive
money for every single can they collect through the program.
Opportunities exist through a community effort, to raise money for local schools,
keep our community clean and beautiful and improve the quality of life for all
our citizens. Bowling Green Technical College is coordinating the program with
the support of the local school systems and many businesses and industries.
The environmental concept has three major components:
1. To promote and teach environmental stewardship to students at all
educational levels (primary, secondary and post secondary).
2. To financially support the education system with a collection and
reward system for aluminum cans with the revenue stream going back
into the individual schools based on their level of participation.
3. To promote environmental education, stewardship and involvement for
all citizens within the community.
Currently in the United Stated 100 billion aluminum cans with a metal value
of $2 billion are consumed annually and only 50% are being recycled resulting
in the annual loss to landfills, or worse, of 50 billion cans with a value
of $1 billion. The goal of this project is to reverse this trend in Kentucky
starting in Warren County (population 100,000) expanding to a 10 county area
(population including Warren County 264,468) within three years and across
the state of Kentucky (population 4 million) within five years and raise the
recycling rate of aluminum cans in Kentucky to 75% or higher within five years.
If these goals are accomplished it would be a national story.
Phase one of the project is to place quality, attractive, large collection
containers assessable to students, parents and the public in each public and
private school in Bowling Green/Warren County. Each school will launch a
campaign to collect cans for their school and the revenues generated will go
directly to the individual schools. The goal is to raise $1 million in revenue
for the local schools over the next five years. The educational priority will
be to teach environmental stewardship, distribute existing environmental literature,
and educate teachers and the general public about environmental issues and
opportunities. In the initial phases of the project over 8,000 elementary students
will be introduced to the project and with federal funding the project will then be
introduced to secondary schools that include over 7,000 additional students.
