EAST NORRITON, Pa. (CBS) – A group of eighth-graders want to end the school year and leave their school in a better state than they found it. So on a sunny day, students at East Norriton Middle School held a massive three-hour cleanup event.
The event started as an Earth Day project and grew into a larger initiative. Students filled more than twenty bags of trash during the event.
“Who put it here? Why would they do that,” said Navah, one of the students involved in the cleanup. “We found a lot of plastic, which is very bad for the environment, but we also found cans, glass bottles and plastic bags. Also a lot of paper.”
Navah was one of nearly 60 students who walked around campus collecting litter.
“My motive for doing this today is to help the environment, build our school community and raise awareness about cleaning up waste,” Navah explained. “I was very proud of everyone. I was very happy that we got it all done.”
This cleanup is part of the Riverbend Environmental Education Center, which introduces students to outdoor education and shows them how they can take action to conserve the Earth’s resources.
Executive Director Erin Reilly is excited to see the youth’s eagerness to participate in cleanup initiatives.
“Every time someone litters, that waste makes its way through our waterways and ultimately to the water treatment plants where water utilities work hard to protect our drinking water,” Reilly said.
Although these eighth graders will soon be heading to high school, they hope their actions have inspired others to help protect our environment.
“Hopefully more people like us would be more inspired and clean up,” Navah said.
“It’s all going to impact the world. Whether you like it or not, and it’s going to hurt your family, and the air we breathe,” said Marley, another eighth grader involved.
Riverbend says 11 schools in Philadelphia have signed up for cleanups and other earth action projects for next school year.
Wakisha Bailey
