JOHNSTON: Ferri Middle School is joining a movement of New England schools replacing disposable dining ware with reusables to fight waste in their cafeterias. The school was awarded a RIDE Get the Foam Out grant which they used to replace an old broken dishwasher with a new energy-efficient model, and they worked with Clean Water's ReThink Disposable campaign to purchase new reusable stainless-steel trays and implement systems to wash, dry, and store them.
“The first day of implementing metal trays marks a small but significant step toward sustainability. Our community is moving closer to reducing waste and building a greener future for our town, our school, and our children's future.” said Matthew Tsonos, Ferri Middle School Principal.
"Ferri Middle School and Brown Avenue School are part of our growing ReThink Disposable movement - reducing waste by switching to reusable dining ware. Phasing out single-use disposable trays and other cafeteria items extends the life of the landfill and fights plastic pollution,” said Amber Schmidt, Clean Water Action’s Zero Waste Specialist. “This is phase one. Next year, we plan to work with Rhode Island School Recycling Project to implement more systems at Ferri, like composting, to keep even more waste out of the landfill.”
“We estimate that by eliminating disposable trays, we will cut the volume of trash from the lunchroom in half. This was possible thanks to Amber's expertise and the support of former Assistant Superintendent Edda Carmadello and the administrators at the Johnston Public School District, Jennifer Garraghan and the Chartwells staff, Principal Matt Tsonos, Jerri Cantone and the facilities and custodial staff, and the students!” said Kelly DeAngelis Rhode Island School Recycling Project Facilitator.
ReThink Disposable, a campaign of Clean Water Action and Clean Water Fund, stops trash before it starts by supporting restaurants, schools, and soup kitchens in phasing out disposable dining ware. Nationwide, participants in ReThink Disposable are preventing the generation of over 28 million pieces of single-use disposable trash every year. Ferri Middle School is the second school in Johnston to join the campaign.
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Since the organization’s founding during the campaign to pass the landmark Clean Water Act in 1972, Clean Water Action has worked to win strong health and environmental protections by bringing issue expertise, solution-oriented thinking, and people power to the table. www.cleanwater.org
