Marine Plastic

Working together to achieve Zero Waste at MGC.

It is a sincere wish of many of us here at MGC that we move towards being not only a carbon neutral school but also a zero waste school. As of last year, Redcycle will no longer be collecting soft plastics from MGC. As such, we ask that students bring as little plastic into the school as possible. We are simply drowning in the amount of plastics and landfill that we have to manage and last year alone it cost the school $12,829.10 to deal with it! (This does not include the paper recycling service or any of our other waste streams). We generated over 1000 cubic meters (1053m^3 to be exact)! We are sure all parents would agree that this money could be much better spent on your daughter’s education.

Hence, we ask that you try as much as possible to reduce the amount of plastic in your daughter’s lunch box. That means no more zip lock bags and cling wrap in particular. We encourage all students to pack their own lunch, place it in reusable containers and make their own, muesli bars, muffins and cakes in order to cut down on packaging. A reminder that our canteen offers several food options in biodegradable paper wrapping and offer discounts for students who bring their own cups for soup and hot beverages. Encourage your children to make good consumer choices.

“By 2050 there will be more plastic in the oceans than fish”. World Economic Forum 2019.

We appreciate your understanding and support on this. If any parents have any ideas on how they think MGC could improve our waste management practices and reduce the amount of waste generated in the first place, the sustainability team would love to hear from you.

Thank you!

Paula McIntosh (on behalf of the MGC Sustainability Team).