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Green Schools

The Green Flag is a progressive and continuous environmental programme designed for schools, at both primary and secondary level. The programme works on themes,  each of which take approx 2 years to adopt.  Examples of themes:

  • Waste & Litter Management
  • Energy Awareness
  • Water Conservation
  • Travel

Benefits of being a Green School

To date 37 Sligo schools have been awarded the prestigious Green Flag and 58 schools are now registered in the programme.  The green school process incorporates teachers, students, parents and the wider community.  Working together to achieve a green flag instills a real sense of pride in the school community. 

Such schools are also saving substantial sums through energy and waste reductions.  For example, once a school is registered, the county council subsides the placing of battery recycling facilities in the school and on receipt of a green flag the school is presented with a cheque for €500 from Sligo County Council. 

Starting

The Environment is a huge subject, so when taking on the Green Schools project for the first time be aware that help is available – from Green schools at An Taisce www.greenschoolsireland.org and from the council’s Environmental Awareness Officer (EAO).   When you decide to become involved in Green Schools your first task is to register. Registration forms are available from Sligo County Council’s Environmental Awareness Officer (EAO),
Address: Unit 9, Cleveragh Business Park, Cleveragh, Sligo.
Telephone: 071 9111908 or E-mail: enviro@sligococo.ie

Once you register your school you will automatically receive information on the programme along with a Green Schools handbook with details of 7 key steps to take in order to achieve Green Flag Status.  The handbook is also available at greenschoolsireland.org

The Application Procedure

Applications for a Green Flag are made to An Taisce, who carry out an assessment in the school before awarding a Green Flag. You should have completed the 7 steps outlines in the handbook.  The programme should have been running in the school for a minimum m of 6 months before you can apply for your flag.  And while you do not have to have all tasks on your action plan completed, you must demonstrate that the action plan, review, green code etc, are in place.

The Application

The application is a bound version of the committee's responses to the 16 application questions found on page 18 of the handbook. For the first flag, An Taisce requires three bound copies of the application. A completed copy of the Award Application Form should also be attached (see page 20 of the handbook). Remember applications must reach the An Taisce office by either the 1st of March or December (so allow time for postage). A short time after your application has been sent off, the County Council will contact you regarding an assessment visit. Flags are normally awarded at a ceremony in Tailors Hall, Dublin (An Taisces HQ) in March or May of each year.


A quick step guide to achieving the Green Flag – more details at www.greenschoolsireland.org

The Waste and Litter Management Theme  - Theme One

The environmental themes on which you must focus for phase one of the programme are waste management and litter.

With regard to waste you should concentrate on implementing the waste management pyramid. By incorporating the ideas below and other projects into your action plan, you can demonstrate waste management according to the pyramid.
waste management pyramid

Here’s Some Examples:

Avoid i.e. A healthy school lunch policy will eliminate many sweet wrappers.
Reduce i.e. Photocopy all paper in 2 to 1 format, thereby cutting paper waste by half.
Re-use i.e. Encourage the use of lunch boxes and drink bottles. Reuse envelopes and waste paper.
Recycle i.e. Use local services to recycle the ‘dry recyclable’ fraction of waste and compost organic waste.

Using the waste management pyramid will probably require that you put a 4-bin system in place. Here’s what is meant by a 4-bin system:
Bin 1 – Non-recyclable landfill Waste
Bin 2 - Organic compostable waste
Bin 3 - Recyclable waste
Bin 4 - Re-use items (envelopes, paper, newspaper, bottles etc).

Some Ideas on litter!

Why not dedicate one full session to discussing litter. Invite a guest speaker. Assess the schools litter problem by identifying where it is, where the litter originates, what is it made up of and ideas to combat it. Organise litter patrols. Take part in National Spring Clean by organising one bigger clean up during the month of April. Make a anti-litter Pledge.

Energy  Awareness - Theme Two

Once you have received your first green flag, it is now time to start working on the new energy awareness theme. Your flag must be renewed every two years, and so the time between your first flag and the renewal date should be spent on encouraging energy conservation and awareness. But don't forget about the waste management systems and litter projects you put in place to gain your flag on the first occasion. Try to keep these going, repeat projects that worked well and try to introduce at least one new project for both the litter and waste management themes.

Where to start with Energy

Most energy is spent on 1) Heating 2) Lighting and 3) Powering appliances. Through your review calculate how much is spent on heating and electricity in both money and energy units (Euros, Kilowatts and litres of fuel). Now through your action plan think about how you can reduce both energy and spending and increase energy awareness.

 
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