 |
| School children do their part to recycle
|
The Environmental Restoration Project
(ERP) team headed by Vicki Nelder has recently completed the final phase of
their project by installing recycling bins throughout town. The ERP consisted of
four focal points: a trash clean-up of the lagoon and San Pedrito areas; public
park landscaping; replanting of vegetation on the beaches and shoreline; and the
creation of a resource management center. The resource
management center will be used to recycle materials from the clean-up campaign
and to create compost (fertilizer consisting of decayed organic matter).
Recently an educational campaign was completed whereby children from the various
schools in San Pedro were informed about the importance of
recycling. The recycling process is very simple and its
benefits are many. Garbage can be separated into five main categories and
disposed of in one of 12 recycling bins that have been placed around town. These
bins have two compartments: one for organic waste and the other for metals,
plastics, glass and paper. Organic waste includes leftover foods like egg
shells, fruit and vegetable peels, tea bags and coffee grounds, coffee filters
and all kinds of paper, yard waste like grass cuttings, dry leaves and branches.
Non-organic garbage: Metals include all aluminum cans. Plastics include water
and soft drink bottles, beverage containers, plastic bags and plastic utensils.
Glass includes beverage containers, glassware and broken crockery. Paper
includes newspapers, writing paper, notebook paper, etc. Once residents have
separated their garbage into organic and non-organic material they can drop them
at any of the recycling bins. Individual or
families can also make their own home bins by utilizing two separate containers
marked organic and non-organic. Your garbage will be collected every day, except
Sunday by the town garbage disposal workers. Organic garbage will be taken to
the resource management center where it will be used to make compost. This will
be used as fertilizer for the greenhouse plants and may eventually be available
for sale. Adding to this program is an Earth Tub, a machine that mechanically
creates compost in only twenty-eight days. This valuable piece of equipment was
donated to the project by the Ministry of the Environment.
Parents are encouraged to teach their children the
importance of recycling. It only takes a short explanation to instill this "good
habit" in children. The people of San Pedro are urged to join the ERP team to
make it a successful program. Be kind, recycle, and help keep "La Isla Bonita"
clean. A number of recycling bins are located in the following places: (2) Boca
del Rio Area, (2) San Pedrito Area, (3) Coconut Drive, (2) behind the Old
Football Field, (1) San Juan Area, (1) San Telmo Area and (1) in Escalante
Subdivision. Anyone wishing further information on this subject may contact
Vicki Nelder at telephone 026-3477. In related news, the
replanting of seedlings will commence very soon. These plants have been treated
with fertilizer, so the public is advised not to eat the heart of palms in these
new plants, as they may be toxic. The Environmental
Restoration Project was funded by the Inter-American Development Bank. The
consultants for this project are WSP International who chose the local firm of
Rojas, Schulz & Nelder as the service providers for this area.
|
