Sammamish elementary school participates in national recycling program

Cascade Ridge Elementary School students have kept thousands of apple sauce and drink pouches out of the landfill since the school joined TerraCycle’s national recycling program.

By Megan Campbell • November 5, 2015 6:34 pm
Cascade Ridge Elementary School students and green team members Elani Rocker and Lex Martinkosky help their peers sort trash from recyclable goods this year. Students have kept thousands of apple sauce and drink pouches out of the landfill since the school joined TerraCycle’s national recycling program last year.
Cascade Ridge Elementary School students and green team members Elani Rocker and Lex Martinkosky help their peers sort trash from recyclable goods this year. Students have kept thousands of apple sauce and drink pouches out of the landfill since the school joined TerraCycle’s national recycling program last year.

Cascade Ridge Elementary School students have kept thousands of apple sauce and drink pouches out of the landfill since the school joined TerraCycle’s national recycling program.

Founded in 2001, TerraCycle is an international company that collects difficult-to-recycle packaging and products to repurpose the material into affordable products.

Cascade Ridge participates in two of 30 programs TerraCycle offers, according to the elementary school’s Dean of Students Jennifer Sehlin.

Since signing up last year, the school has recycled 2,862 apple sauce pouches through the GoGo squeeZ Brigade, she said.

“The school is among the top GoGo squeeZ collectors of 2015, having collected 1,257 this year,” according to a TerraCycle press release.

Through the company’s Drink Pouch Brigade, the school has also recycled more than 18,000 aluminum and plastic drink pouches, Sehlin said.

“Just getting those pouches out of the landfill is amazing,” Sehlin said. “TerraCycle specifically has been a good way to support our sustainable practices.”

Cascade Ridge, along with the other 24 schools in the Issaquah School District, participate in King County’s Green Schools Program.

The four-level program provides schools in King County with the knowledge and support necessary to initiate and expand green practices, like waste reduction and recycling.

Cascade Ridge Elementary School students and green team members Jaxson Butcher and Jack Manning help collect drink pouches during lunch hour this year.The Cascade Ridge green team, made up of third-, fourth- and fifth-grade students, help other students implement such practices on campus.

These same students also help man the bins during the lunch hour, helping their peers sort trash from recyclable materials.

“It’s been a cool program,” Sehlin said. “The kids are really into it.”

This year, there are around 100 children who signed up for the green team and to volunteer during lunch.

For every piece of waste recycled and delivered to TerraCycle, the school earns redeemable points, which can be donated to a charity of its choice or the school.

Nationally, participants recycled 1.4 million squeezable drink pouches and caps and raised more than $30,000 for schools and nonprofit organizations, according to a TerraCycle press release.

So far, Cascade Ridge’s account shows a $300 balance, Sehlin said.

Sehlin said the school hasn’t decided what to do with it yet.

Last year, the school used some of the money to buy pencil pouches for the green team volunteers.

For more information on TerraCycle, visit www.terracycle.com.