Please enjoy this archived article from the old Mentor High School Inkwell, one of the earlier incarnations of the Mentor High School student newspaper that ran from 1992-2021 both in print and online. Special thanks to Mrs. Ford and the GenYes team for scanning and sharing the original article.

Fifteen years ago, Mentor High students were already concerned about the environment. On this Earth Day, how much of this has come to pass, and what can we do better? Perhaps consider joining our Green Team to help!  – Mr. Couch, Cardinal Nation Advisor

November 10, 2008

Cardinal Cafe Going Green

by Blake Lewis, Staff Writer

Is the Cardinal Cafe going green? Is our school going green? Should they? On average, Americans throw away 4.5 pounds of trash each day, with only 10% getting recycled. In fact, every hour, Americans throw away 2.5 million plastic bottles. Part of each student’s 4.5 pounds of daily rubbish is inevitably thrown away at school, as a large part of their day is spent here. But where are they putting their plastic bottles?

One answer appears to be “in the trash.” Plastic makes up about 1/3 of the Lake County Landfill and it’s not going anywhere soon as plastic takes about 450 years to decompose. But what other options exist here at Mentor High?

Last year, the Ecology Club was involved in a temporary contest to recycle plastic. These bins were still in the cafeteria at the beginning of this school year. Unfortunately, the bins are no longer there because a large dumpster is needed to put the plastic in, and there isn’t anywhere to put it at the moment.

And what about all the other trash from the cafeteria? Food service is looking into eventually moving into recyclable containers, trays, and eating utensils for the lunchroom that are created using starch by products and natural decomposable materials.

What can you do to be part of the solution? Until recycling bins are available, reuse your bottles or recycle your plastic when you get home. Recycling saves our natural resources and is one way you can make a real difference.