And the winners of the 2015 Lake Macquarie School Environment Awards are...

Blacksmiths Public School and Charlton Christian College have been named the overall winners of the 2015 Lake Macquarie School Environment Awards at a ceremony held in the Lake Macquarie City Council Chambers this morning.

The Lake Macquarie School Environment Awards seek to recognise, support and reward schools that are participating in environmental improvement projects across the City.

This year, Blacksmiths Public School was recognised as the overall winner in the primary school category, while Charlton Christian College took out the high school category.

Council’s Manager Sustainability, Alice Howe, said both schools had put in an enormous amount of effort to foster sustainability practices in their respective school communities.

“Blacksmiths Public School has been a bin-free school for more than four years,” Dr Howe said.

“Students and teachers recycle food scraps through worm farms and compost bins located throughout the school and the resulting worm juice and compost is used to fertilise the school’s vegetable and herb gardens and fruit trees.

“Produce grown at the school is used by students in the school’s Stephanie Alexander kitchen garden classroom and in their healthy canteen program, and any excess is sold at a fortnightly garden stall, with money raised going back into the garden.

“The school also collects plastic, paper, cardboard, household batteries, ink cartridges and e-waste for recycling, uses rainwater collected onsite in its bathrooms and makes the most of solar energy, with senior students working on ways to reduce usage, ensuring appliances are switched off at the power point when not in use and monitoring results through an online graph program.”

Dr Howe said Charlton Christian College has a number of student-led sustainable initiatives.

“Charlton Christian College’s waste efforts include co-mingled recycling containers placed throughout the school, which are checked daily for contamination by volunteer student monitors,” Dr Howe said.

“Three huge rainwater tanks at the school collect water that is used for irrigation and flushing toilets, and spring-loaded taps have been installed to reduce water wastage.

“The school also has a water refilling station that enables students to refill drink bottles throughout the day, helping to reduce the need for disposable plastic bottles.

“Students participate annually in Clean-up Australia Day and make use of sustainable transport options like public transport and cycling when travelling to and from school each day.”

Twenty-three schools participated in the Lake Macquarie School Environment Awards program in 2015.

Dr Howe said it was a credit to teachers and parents to see so many students across the City committed to improving their environment and building a more sustainable world.

The 2015 Lake Macquarie School Environment Awards are sponsored by Delta Electricity, Centennial Mandalong, Hunter Resource Recovery and Glencore – West Wallsend underground.

For more information visit Lake Macquarie City Council