Formentera schoolchildren hear case for recycling glass

Campanya ecovidrio fotoEnvironment secretary Daisee Aguilera was joined by Iván Tolsà, a spokesman for Ecovidrio, at a presentation of a recycling campaign hitting local schools this week. Pupils from two of the island's schools—in La Mola and Sant Francesc's Mestre Lluís Andreu—will participate in activities related to “Suma vidre, a l'escola!” (or, translated literally into English, “Adding glass, at school!”), which began September 28 and is scheduled to conclude October 6.

The glass-object recycling bins popping up in recent weeks at island schools are part of a double effort, first, to raise awareness about the importance of recycling glass and the direct environmental impact of doing so, and second, to encourage consumers to buy glass-packaged products, which, considering their 100% rate of recapture, represent of the cleanest options. Educators have attempted to shine a light on the different kinds of glass that can be recycled, part of a wider effort to prevent non-recyclable objects from winding up in recycling bins.

All the recyclables brought in so far will be picked up tomorrow. Whichever school manages to generate the most kilos of glass per pupil will take part in a special arts and crafts workshop on Friday. The fruits of participants' labours will be donated to the Save Posidonia Project. Secretary Daisee Aguilera highlighted the importance of educating children about recycling and hailed the initiative's related activities.

The nonprofit group Ecovidrio has been responsible for glass recycling in Spain since 1998. The company oversees the recycling process from start to finish, including differentiated collection, transport, processing of glass receptacles and their successive transformation into objects of commercial value.