Sustainability

Waste Wise and Sustainability School

The Waste Wise Schools program implements educational strategies for reducing waste to landfill by implementing the 3Rs, reduce, reuse, recycle - while developing positive environmental values in students and the whole school community. Boyanup School models responsible environmental behaviours through hands-on learning experiences that are linked to the Australian Curriculum.

The sustainability program is a whole-of-school approach, to explore through real-life learning experiences, improvements in a school's management of resources and facilities including energy, waste, water, biodiversity, landscape design, products and materials. It also addresses associated social and financial issues. Our current focus is on solar power, recycling, water management, organic kitchen gardening and enterprise.

Organic Kitchen Garden

A wonderful addition to any school science, health, literacy or numeracy program is the construction and maintenance of an aquaponic and  kitchen garden.  Aquaponics is the combination of aquaculture and hydroponics providing fresh fish and organic produce by efficiently  recycling nutrient-rich water through a  series of grow beds.   Aquaponics is more sustainable than the standard garden as it only uses a fraction of the water required.  Classroom aquaponics also introduces students to an area of biology. Students are engaged in a fun way to encourage a long-term commitment to  sustainable agriculture and living.  They directly participate in the nitrogen fixation process rather than simply reading about it in a textbook.

Beyond the basics of learning about environmental science, classroom aquaponics and traditional kitchen gardens helps students develop reasoning, problem-solving, math, water management, seed-saving, organic pest control, chemistry, and a  variety of other scientific skills.  It also promotes pride of accomplishment and rewards students with a nutritious and delicious bounty of organic food. A variety of school curriculums can be explored through an organic kitchen garden.

  • Learn about health and nutrition of various foods
  • Examine the economics of selling in the marketplace
  • Calculate volume and surface area of the system
  • Explore the nitrogen cycle
  • Explain and monitor pH
  • Study the life cycle of the fish and plants
  • Study aerobic and anaerobic systems and bacteria
  • Experiment on which fish and plants do best
  • Learn about environmental sustainability practices
  • Create artistic renderings of the produce

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