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Community Corner

Get Green for Back to School This Year

Send your kids back to school with the three R's—reduce, reuse, and recycle.

In just a few days, the children of Gloucester Township will be turning in their frisbees and for school bags and sneakers.

Buses will again be lining the streets of developments all around town. While we shop and prepare for the upcoming school year, it's easy to become overwhelmed. But the schoolyard is no place to ditch all of the good green progress we've made. 

If you're using these last few days of summer to shop or prepare for back to school, why not consider these eco-friendly ideas to reduce your carbon footprint?

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Reduce

How much stuff do you really need? Instead of going out and buying every single thing that you think you may possibly need for the upcoming school year in triplicate, wait until you get a supplies list from the teacher. Many send them home at the end of the previous school year, or mail them over the summer. If you have to wait until the first or second day of school, don't panic! I promise you there will still be plenty of supplies left in stores, and you might even get some end-of-season sales that you would have missed by shopping mid-summer.

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Reuse

The best possible thing you can do to stay green and really reduce your carbon footprint is to reuse school supplies from the previous year. Now, I know, on the last day of school when those bookbags come home, it's tempting to just toss everything away and never have to see it again. But, if you've managed to save some of last year's supplies, give them a look. A pencil or binder that's in good shape from last school year is just as functional in the upcoming year. Paper clips, rulers, backpacks, staplers, markers, crayons, erasers—all are supplies that withstand the year-to-year test. If you must buy new supplies, look into eco-friendly supplies. It's easy to find things like pencils, notebooks and paper made from recycled materials.

Recycle

Pack your kids a "waste-free" lunch. Use a lunchbox instead of paper or plastic lunch bags. Pack reusable drink and food containers instead of juice boxes, bottles and sandwich bags. In addition to eliminating a whole school year's worth of waste, you'll save a school year's worth of money on disposable containers and bags. If you absolutely can't do without your disposables, try bags and baggies made from recycled materials. Be sure to recycle all of the bags when done, as well as juice boxes and drink bottles. All of this will be a piece of cake once Gloucester Township begins its program.

Remember, there are easy green solutions around every corner. Most of them will save you time and money—money you can use towards next summer's family vacation.

Have a great school year everyone!

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