Parents in Torfaen are being urged to think of the environment before taking their children to school.
Every day parents in the county borough are busy thinking about what they need to include in their children’s bags and lunchboxes.
To help them in their task, Torfaen County Borough Council has teamed up with Waste Awareness Wales to give families the opportunity to "go green" during the Autumn term.
Executive Member for Operational Services, Cllr John Cunningham, said: "It is easy for us all to lead an environmentally friendly lifestyle and there are many things parents and pupils can do.
"By following simple hints and tips families can help save the environment and save money."
Here is a list of handy hints and tips to help families go green:
-
Sort through last year’s school bag- many items such as pencils and folders can be used again and others such as paper from old note books can be recycled.
-
School uniform that no longer fits can be handed down to younger siblings, passed on to a charity shop or taken to local clothes recycling bank.
-
Look out for school equipment made from recycled materials.
-
Get creative and cover text books in old wrapping paper or wallpaper.
-
Pack a waste-free lunch- use a reusable lunch box and containers for food rather than storage bags that will be thrown away. Put drinks in reusable bottles.
-
Left over fruit peelings and cores can be composted.
-
Put any used bottles and cans in your kerbside recycling box.
Torfaen’s recycling rate is currently 37 per cent – just three per cent short of the Welsh Assembly’s 2009-10 target.
And the Council is currently in the top 25 per cent of Welsh authorities for its recycling performance.
For more information phone Ben Payne, Torfaen Council’s Waste Management Communications Officer on 01495 766760.