Plastic foam food containers end up in a landfill after one use.
Schools use millions of disposable plastic foam wrappers in cafeterias to contain food and keep it warm. The containers are environmentally wasteful, ending up in a landfill after one use. Environmental foundations encourage student initiatives to develop a reusable food wrapping system for taking food "to go." The foundations support schools' initiatives through various grants.
Environmental Research & Education Foundation
The Environmental Research & Education Foundation provides grants for schools with new initiatives on environmentally friendly food wrapping. The EREF awards grants of between $500,000 and $1 million annually to the state of Pennsylvania and across the United States. It looks for new concepts of waste management practices within schools such as containers made made of melamine and BPA-free plastic as an eco-clamshell type of container.
Planet Connect
Planet Connect awards grants of $1,000 to students at high schools across the country with creative environmental project ideas. Cafeterias using polystyrene lunch trays waste approximately 20 pounds of plastic on a daily basis per school. Grants are made available to students who come up with ideas to eliminate the wasteful food wrapping and containers. Planet Connect has awarded a grant to schools for introducing reusable, washable trays and containers to eliminate wasteful trash and for reducing the continuous costs to the school for plastic foam lunch trays. To qualify for the grant students may need to show support from student and parent volunteers to clean the trays several times a week to avoid an additional staffing cost.
Government Grants
The state of Pennsylvania awards grants for waste reduction and recycling development through the state's municipalities. Municipalities award funds to schools with waste programs, recycling programs and community events to educate the public on waste reduction. Grants from $13,000 to $500,000 have been awarded to various municipalities.
National Science Foundation
Across the United States, where a school is able to demonstrate research on environmentally friendly food wrapping, the National Science Foundation may award a grant. NSF supports research and education through grants, awarding 10,000 grants annually in various amounts. The foundation is part of a government grant program and accounts for about 20 percent of federal support to schools for basic research.
Tags: food wrapping, awards grants, Planet Connect, Education Foundation, eliminate wasteful