Elk Rapids Efforts

Humans are the cause of climate change and global warming, plain and simple. We are also the solution to it, if we want to be. In our quaint town of Elk Rapids, we take pride in how environmentally conscious we are. In the midst of that, there are still many things that we could do as a community to reduce our carbon footprint. One of them being here in our very own Elk Rapids High School cafeteria. As a school, we still use plasticware, wrapped in plastic covering, on top of styrofoam trays. Styrofoam is a substance that is not biodegradable-- meaning it will not deteriorate over time. Once it is created, it stays in existence forever. As a town that considers itself eco-friendly, we should immediately take action in finding a greener alternative to styrofoam trays. As for plastic silverware, there are accessible alternatives that schools have been trying in previous years. A school in Minnesota tried reusable metal utensils as a greener alternative to plastic. The result prevented over 6,700 pounds of trash and they were expected to save around $23,000 in plasticware expenses. The manufacturing of metal silverware reduces greenhouse gasses by 77% and saves water consumption by tens of thousands of gallons. There are many actions our school should execute to ensure a greener future in Elk Rapids, and the rest of the world, but first we can handle what is hurting our environment the most, our use of plastic and styrofoam. As a member of the student council, this is something I will bring to the council e-board, which includes two eco-club members. If we bring together everyone who loves our earth and is passionate about keeping it healthy, real change can be done, even here in our tiny town of Elk Rapids.