11 - Tips for SchoolsPhone: 949-645-8400 Fax: 949-650-2253 Website: www.cmsdca.gov District of Distinction Recipient from 2009-2012 628 W. 19th Street Costa Mesa, CA 92627 Waste Free Wednesday —Encourage students to pack lunches in reusable containers. Source separate recyclables—Provide separate containers for recyclable items (e.g. plastic bottles, aluminum cans, other CRV beverage containers, etc.) Eco Education Night —Host an evening event with guest speakers on how source reduction protects the environment. Rewarding Program—Reward students for caught in the act making green choices by giving away eco-friendly prizes. Share Green Tips —Once a week encourage students to share green tips with the entire school. PTA Involvement—Solicit PTA involvement and participation on source reduction initiatives for your school. Note: These suggestions are currently being performed at Davis Magnet School. Contact Davis Magnet School’s Green Team/Eco Club to obtain more information at (714) 424-5000. Best Practices Costa Mesa Sanitary District CMSDCA.GOV Helpful Tips to Promoting Source Reduction at Schools Costa Mesa Sanitary District About CMSD The Costa Mesa Sanitary District was incorporated in 1944, nine years before Costa Mesa became a city, for the purpose of finding a legal place to dispose of trash. Sixty eight years later, CMSD provides sewer and trash collected services to over 116,000 residents residing in Costa Mesa and portions of Newport Beach and unincorporated Orange County. CMSD is a public agency and is governed by an elected five member Board of Directors.
The Costa Mesa Sanitary District (CMSD) is available to assist Costa Mesa schools on implementing successful sustainable and source reduction programs. The CMSD programs identified in this brochure are free to schools! Composting If you have a garden on school grounds or you are considering a garden bed that teaches students the introduction of gardening, horticulture and environmental sustainability, CMSD can provide free composting bins. CMSD has two bins to choose from; a traditional earth machine or a smaller rotating composter Vermicomposting Organic recycling by using worms is a fun way to teach students how discarded fruits and vegetable waste can be used to benefit the environment and improve gardens. A CMSD consultant will arrive at your school to install a worm bin unit, worms & bedding followed by a classroom presentation on how recycling organic waste materials is made into rich soil amendments Telephone Book Recycling Participate in CMSD’s Telephone Book Recycling Program and earn up to $2,000 for your school. Simply encourage students to bring in their old unused telephone books to school and earn cash. Contact CMSD for more information. Zero Waste Lunch Education CMSD has partnered with Inside the Outdoors, an environmental education prog ram administered by the OC Department of Education to provide Zero Waste lunch education programs for Costa Mesa K-6th grade students and teachers. Students learn how to reduce their lunch waste and then they will actually see the progress being made to reducing food waste at school. Classroom educational materials, school audits (for ongoing tracking of results), and student prizes are all part of the program. Eco Challenge Education Program CMSD has also partnered with the Discovery Science Center to expand its Eco Challenge Education Program to 6th grade students and teachers. The program focusses on the 3 R message, “Reduce, Reuse & Recycle”. The Program includes in-class assembly, take home items and survey and a field trip to the Discovery Science Center. Transportation to and from the Discovery Science Center is free to schools. Recycling Tours Ever wanted to know where recyclables go after they are placed in the trash can? Find out by taking a trip to CR&R’s Material Recovery Faci lity (MRF) in Stanton to see firsthand how recyclables are sorted, processed and shipped to be recycled again. The tour, along with the transportation cost to and from the MRF is paid for by CMSD. Bottles and Cans Recycling Program Earn cash for your school! CMSD’s partner, CR&R Environmental Services, will deliver a lockable storage container to your school. Encourage students to bring plastic bottles and aluminum cans that have the CA CRV logo on them to your school to be stored in the container. Once the container is full, CR&R will pick up and exchange the container and they will issue your school a check within three days for the full CRV value based on weight. Your school can earn up to $850 a month, depending on the CRV value and how successful your program is. Who to contact at CMSD Please contact Javier Ochiqui at (949) 645-8400 or at jochiqui@cmsdca.gov CMSD is here to help!