FAIRMONT, Minn. -
While recycling may feel like a chore for many adults, formost kids, its part of their daily routines, but for students at Fairmont AreaSchools, there was one problem.
Sixth graders Abby Tonder and Makena Rodriguez said,"There isn't any recycling or anything in the school."
Not in the hallways, classrooms, even the gymnasiums wherethe sports teams play.
Fairmont superintendent Joe Brown said, "They lookaround for the recycling centers and we don't have recycling containers."
The district has been meeting minimum recycling requirementsset by law by recycling in places like the kitchen and office, but forstudents.
"There are not manyoptions if you have a bunch of extra papers in your folders you want to get ridof you have to throw them in the trash can," said sixth grader Henry Van Bemmel.
People had been talking about the lack of recycling at theschool for some time.
Billeye Rabbe said, "But then I got a formal complaintfrom a resident of the community."
Billeye Rabbe is the county's solid waste coordinator; shetalked to the district about the complaint.
Brown said, "Basically we decided we need to set a goodexample."
Within the next couple months, the district will add almost100 recycling receptacles both in and outside schools.
Buildings and grounds director David Ternberg said,"There will be containers places at various places in hallways, aroundgymnasium, cafeterias, commons areas that type of thing."
Rabbe said, "They are taking the ball and running withit and I think the students and teachers and everybody involved are veryappreciative."
The other nice thing about recycling is that it will lowerthe schools garbage removal costs.
Brown said, "Garbage removal from a school or any publicentity is very expensive."
And students said less garbage now means fewer problems inthe future.
Sixth grader Avry Rice said, "So that way in like 50years the planet is not going to be like there is trash everywhere and we don'tknow where to put it."
Brown said, "I'm just very proud of our studentbody and the community and it does get some people in the community off orbacks, because they were right and we should have been doing this for a longtime."
