Clean Up New Zealand

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This Hot Topic was compiled to help schools prepare for Clean Up New Zealand Week, to be held from 17–23 September 2001.

Organised by the Clean Up New Zealand Trust, the first formal Clean Up New Zealand week was held in 1998.

It is held in partnership with The United Nations Environment programme (www.unep.org) and Clean Up the World (www.cleanuptheworld.org). Over 200 countries participate.

The first Clean Up New Zealand week attracted the involvement of an estimated 28,000 volunteers. Over 140,000 were estimated to have been involved in 1999, and this year the Clean Up New Zealand Trust is aiming to involve around 250,000 people.

Your class or school can get involved by nominating a place to clean up such as a local reserve, riverbank, or walkway.

According to Clean Up New Zealand, each New Zealander produces about 900kg of waste, every year. This is much more than the average American, and more than most OECD nations. Nearly half that 900kg is household waste, and most of it can be recycled or composted. But we're putting most of it into landfills.

Clean Up New Zealand has provided a few simple tips to focus on, and a week of activities to provoke people to act on environmental issues in their own backyard.

• Buy the product that has the least packaging.
• Choose goods with biodegradable or recyclable packaging.
• Complain about too much packaging to manufacturers.
• Buy or grow fresh fruit and vegetables rather than frozen or canned food.
• Put a "no junk mail" sign on your mailbox.
• Don't take your shopping home in plastic bags, take a reusable bag with you.
• Avoid disposable versions of goods like razors, nappies, plastic cups, and plates.
• Don't use disposable paper or polystyrene cups – take your own cup with you.
• Donate your unwanted goods to a charity, don't dump them.
• Buy secondhand household furniture, sand and polish, or repaint it.
• Use your local recycling scheme or pressure your council to get one.
• Buy goods made from recycled materials.

Clean Up the World
From September 21-23 each year, millions of people in more than 100 countries join forces under the banner of Clean Up the World, an apolitical, non-profit organisation (www.cleanuptheworld.org/).

United Nations Environment Programme
The UNEP website has a wealth of information on the environment and legislation collected from throughout the world, and a youth programme (www.unep.org).

Recycling
This TKI Hot Topic highlights how recycling can help reduce New Zealand's waste mountain. It includes links to TKI and other web resources, and links to relevant New Zealand curriculum statements (www.tki.org.nz/r/hot_topics/recycle_e.php).

Energy Efficiency
To celebrate World Environment Day on 5 June 2001, this hot topic highlights the effect our society's increasing hunger for energy is having on the environment (www.tki.org.nz/r/hot_topics/energy_e.php).

Ocean Conservation
This Hot Topic provides a collection of websites about the ocean, biodiversity, conservation, and resource use, and information on the Young Conservationist of the Year Award (www.tki.org.nz/r/hot_topics/oceans_e.php).

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
In this level 1 unit intended for year 1, students will gain understanding of the environmental issues inherent in the Reduce, Reuse, Recycle message (http://english.unitecnology.ac.nz/resources/units/recycle/home.html).

Department of Conservation
The Department of Conservation's website includes a schools' page accessible from the Community link, with details on how to get involved in conservation programmes (www.doc.govt.nz).

How much waste do we produce?
The Ministry for the Environment's waste indicators programme gives details on the amount of solid waste disposed of in landfills around New Zealand, and the amount of waste disposed of per person (www.environment.govt.nz/waste/landfill).

Hazardous waste
This website describes the problem of hazardous waste, and suggests possible solutions. It looks at hazardous waste in the home and how to dispose of it, and provides links to information on industrial waste reduction, and technical information on cleaning up hazardous waste (www.learner.org/exhibits/garbage/hazardous.html).

Project Crimson
The Project Crimson website provides information about New Zealand's endangered pohutukawa and rata trees, including how to protect them, and grow them from seeds or cuttings (www.projectcrimson.org.nz/Welcome.html).

Recycle City
A game and activities designed to help students understand the effect of different ways of disposing of solid waste are features of this site (www.epa.gov/recyclecity)

Garbage
This online exhibition is organised into four major sections – What is Garbage?, There's No "Away", Nature Recycles, and Making Choices. Throughout the exhibition you can read about people who have made a difference, and access a variety of activities for home or school use (www.astc.org/exhibitions/rotten/rthome.htm).

United States Environmental Protection Agency
The EPA website highlights environmental issues and contains an education section for students and teachers with information on conservation, endangered species, ecosystems, water, air, waste, and recycling (www.epa.gov).

Wellington Regional Council
WRC's website covers topics such as pollution, environmental monitoring, rainfall and river flows, and hazard maps (www.wrc.govt.nz).

Science in the New Zealand Curriculum (www.tki.org.nz/r/science/curriculum/toc_e.php), Technology in the New Zealand Curriculum (www.tki.org.nz/r/technology/curriculum/contents_e.php), and Social Studies in the New Zealand Curriculum (www.tki.org.nz/r/socialscience/curriculum/index_e.php) are available on TKI.