Media Release
School Board of Manatee County
P.O. Box 9069- Bradenton, Florida 34206-9096
215 Manatee Avenue- Bradenton, 34205
Telephone (941) 708-8770 Fax (941) 708-8680



MANATEE DISTRICT UNVEILS REMARKABLE

NEW RECYCLING PROJECT

CONTACT:   Margi Nanney, 941/708-8770 Ext. 2046                          Cell (941) 650-8378

(Bradenton, FL. – September 21, 2009) The Manatee County School District is the first school system in the country to introduce an innovative new Green technology that transforms disposable Styrofoam lunch trays into usable plastic flower pots.

A demonstration of this extraordinary new conservation program will take place at two Manatee District schools this Wednesday, September 23, 2009. The first demonstration will take place at Palmetto High School at 9:30 a.m. The second will take place at Nolan Middle School at 11 a.m.

The new process starts when students at Palmetto High and Nolan Middle place their Styrofoam lunch trays in a recycle stack following each lunch. Those trays are collected and placed in a Thermo Compactor – manufactured by Thermo Compaction Systems in Lakeland – that melts the Styrofoam trays into a thick block of hard plastic that is approximately two-feet long, four inches high and six inches wide. A company named Ate-Off-Me Products then takes the plastic blocks and molds them into durable pots that can hold flowers, plants or other items. Schools can actually take the pots and sell them to raise funds for other educational programs.

In addition to turning refuse into a reusable product, schools that use this new technology substantially reduce the amount of garbage they produce, which cuts garbage collection costs as well as the number of garbage bags needed to contain the garbage.

At Palmetto High, the Manatee District’s Energy Department estimates the number of garbage bags filled from lunch each day will be reduced from more than 60 bags, to approximately 15. In addition, the cost of trash pick ups at Palmetto High will be reduced by more than $6,500 this school year, according to Energy Department estimates.

Photos of the Thermo Compactor and the finished flower pots are being distributed along with this media release. If you have further questions or want to know more about Wednesday’s demonstrations, please contact Patrick Gallagher at 704-5382 or Jennifer Malloy at 737-0483.

Palmetto High is located at 1200 17^th St. W. in Palmetto. Nolan Middle is located at 6615 Greenbrook Blvd. in east Manatee County.




http://wastenews.texterity.com/wastenews/20091026/?fm=2#pg26