Collect-a-Can award green schools

THE Birches Pre-Primary School won R25 000 when green schools were rewarded for their hard work and eco-conscious spirit at the Durban regional Collect-a-Can Schools’ Awards.

The annual awards celebrated the efforts of competing schools and honoured the schools that collected the most cans per month, with special prizes for schools that collected the most cans throughout the year. Big schools competed to collect the most cans per school, while the second category recognised small schools that collected the most cans per pupil.

The overall Durban regional champions, Lindelani Primary School, winners in category one and The Birches Pre-Primary School, winners in category two, won R25 000 each. Lindelani Primary School collected a whopping 196 947 cans during the competition, while The Birches Pre-Primary School collected 3 867 cans per pupil.

Zimasa Velaphi, public relations and marketing manager for Collect-a-Can, said teachers and pupils worked tirelessly throughout the year to safeguard the environment and ensure a sustainable income stream for their schools.

“It is wonderful to see the impact the money generated through recycling and the prize money has on the schools’ facilities and education for their pupils,” said Velaphi.

Collect-a-Can announced that schools can expect bigger prizes and greater incentives in next year’s competitions. “The 2015 competitions are guaranteed to be bigger, better and even more fun. We are already planning to breathe new life into these competitions to ensure that schools are having fun while going green,” added Velaphi.

The National Schools Competition takes place annually from 1 February to 31 October every year.

To find out how to get involved in waste recovery and recycling, visit Collect-a-Can’s website www.collectacan.co.za or contact the Collect-a-Can head office on 011 466 2939. Collect-a-Can is also on facebook and Twitter.