Lower electricity bills, less trash being thrown out and the school’s garden benefiting from plentiful rich compost are some of the tangible results West Pembroke Primary is reaping thanks to a proactive green initiative that started at the end of last year.

The enthusiastic students have done such an impressive job implementing environmentally friendlier practices that, in the space of a little over six months, ensured the school has reached the bronze and silver Gorham’s Enviro- Schools awards levels in quick succession.

That enthusiasm was evident as the young team leaders carried out the latest trash audit to see how well the school is doing at reducing the amount of trash it throws out, and how much it is now able to recycle or compost.

The bags of trash from the various classes were much smaller than they had been when the first trash audit was conducted — proof the message is getting through and more students are bringing “trash free” lunches to eat, while the school has reduced the amount of paper waste it generates.

“It has been a learning experience for all of us,” said Deputy Principal Wendall Smith. He pointed to improvements that have been made around the school, including the creation of a sensory garden, bright murals on some walls and a vegetable garden benefiting from compost created through the correct separation of waste items by the students.

“The parents and the children are very enthusiastic,” he said. “When the children go out of a room they switch off the lights and the ceiling fans. We’ve saved thousands of dollars each month on our energy bills. And they are going home and teaching their parents ways to save electricity, and how to recycle and compost.”

Enid Jacobs is chair of West Pembroke’s enviro team, and she assisted as the team leaders weighed the bags of trash collected around the school during the latest trash audit. Six months ago it took two-and-a-half hours to sift through the trash to separate recyclables and compostables from regular trash. This month, due to the students’ efforts to reduce the amount of avoidable trash being thrown out, the job was done in less than an hour.

West Pembroke and Victor Scott are the two schools which started on the enviro schools pathway last November after being introduced to the concept by the Bermuda Environmental Alliance’s Sangita Iyer, who gave presentations at both schools and set them on their way as the organisation wrapped up its work on the Island.

Gorham’s adopted the schools to provide sponsorship. The firm’s CEO Andrew Mackay has played a supportive role encouraging the schools to achieve award points by reducing waste, recycling more efficiently and saving energy.

“It has been great fun and we are going to support both the schools onwards to their gold awards,” he said.

Bags from Gorham’s containing reusable lunch box containers and drink bottles were handed out to the students this month to further reduce the need for students to bring lunches to school using throwaway wrappers and plastic bottles. The schools has also been given recycling bins and composters.

Asked why Gorham’s got involved, Mr Mackay said it had followed on from a trash reduction programme introduced to the firm by the Bermuda Environmental Alliance.

“Sangita mentioned this enviro schools initiative and we said we wanted to get involved. Gorham’s sees it as saving Bermuda for the next generation, changing the mindset of the kids,” he said.

School Deputy Mr Smith is delighted with the progress West Pembroke has made and proudly points to a new banner to encourage further environmentally-sound stewardship by students. The banner reads: ‘Our hands can heal Mother Earth. Small steps towards a big change.”

At West Pembroke Primary that big change is clearly underway.