STAR paper report on Recycling Bank Handover by DANIDA on August 27, 2008

ABOUT 1,900 students from SMK Seri Balik Pulau and SK Balik Pulau
are now responsible for managing the Penang Municipal Council DANIDA Recycling Bank Project, launched at their respective schools.

DANIDA chief technical advisor Ib Larsen who handed the project over to project advisor Nur Asiah Nordin said he hoped the council would be able to assist the students with the project from now on.

Today, we hand over the project to the two schools which had successfully completed the project implementation and there is a lot more for us to do at other schools, he added.

The recycling bank project is a programme that aims to further strengthen recycling efforts in schools.

Going green: The students posing with the project mascot.

Carried out at SMK Seri Balik Pulau, SK Balik Pulau and Kampung Jalan Baru, a rural community in Balik Pulau, the project seeks to encourage students to practise and under- stand recycling, reuse and reduce wastage, keep their schools and the surroundings clean, preserve the environment and generate income.

Before, we had to report to DANIDA the progress of the recycling bank of our schools since it is the main sponsor for this project,

After today's ceremony, we have independence to conduct the recycling bank project, said Nur Asiah who also teaches at SMK Seri Balik Pulau.

She also said each individual would have a small booklet to record the amount of recycled materials they brought and income generated from them.

She also said the income from the project would strengthen the schools' Parent-Teacher Asso-ciation and lessen the financial burden for the associations.

SK Balik Pulau teacher Hakimi bin Saman said the students were very committed to contributing towards the project.

We got positive feedback from the students and six tonnes of recycled materials have been gathered since the project first started, he said

The projects' other partner was Socio-economic and Environmental Research Institute (SERI). ESH Re-source Management Sdn Bhd will remain as the project partner to buy recycled materials from the schools.

Credit : The Star August 29th, 2008