The city of Ridgeland along with a local elementary school have cooperated to start a student led recycling program. The city paid a visit to the school, Highland Elementary, after receiving a bill from Waste Management claiming the school had placed improper items into the recycling bins.
“The containers were worn out. That stuff doesn’t last forever,” said Mike McCollum, public works director.
That was an easy fix. Ridgeland pays for their public school’s recycling, as well as any equipiment associated with recycling. Soon after their visit to the school, McCollum, and Jan Richardson with Keep Ridgeland Beautiful, returned with all new containers. This included a new eight-yard rolling container which collects recycling from all of the classes, and different sizes of individual bins for classrooms.
“We envisioned a student led program,” said McCollum.
Highland Elementary repaid the favor by developing that vision. They began educating students on what to and what not to put inside the bins. They posted flyers in the classrooms with that information on it for students to see when throwing their trash away.
The school’s honor society members are in charge of the recycling program, according to Darian Knox, assistant principal.
One of their duties are to check through the items to make sure they are all proper.
Ridgeland has paid for its residential and public-school recycling as early as 1994. They distributed each new neighbor a bin and even have an award program for people who actively recycle. As much as 99 percent of Ridgeland’s citizens recycle.
