Wayne Hills High School must commit to energy efficiency, 100% clean renewable energy sources and makes changes toward on-campus sustainability by 2030.

We must transition off of fossil fuels to prevent catastrophic climate change all over the world. Climate change in New Jersey is having far-reaching impacts on the economy, the environment, and the way we conduct our everyday lives. Warmer temperatures are expected to produce more severe heat waves. Sea level rise and heavy rains are causing more frequent and intense flooding. These are projected to escalate through the 21st century and will fall heaviest on New Jersey’s most vulnerable populations. (Rutgers, 2020)

Everything is at stake: our health, our infrastructure, our economy, and most importantly, our environment.

It is therefore urgent that Wayne Hills High School transition from fossil fuels to clean, renewable energy. Renewable energy plus battery storage is essential to reducing indirect carbon emissions and fighting the climate crisis. Wayne Hills saw the danger of the climate crisis and installed solar panels in 2011, however we need to ensure that we are maximizing energy efficiency and that our footprint has not increased since that time.

As technology improves and renewable energy becomes cheaper and more readily available, traditional non-renewable energy is growing in cost. This means that 100% clean energy would allow Wayne Hills High School to save money that can be used in the classroom.

We also need to create a campus where environmental justice and sustainability are a priority. Students are receiving free lunches now and everyone is back to in-person schooling. Due to increases in lunches, more styrofoam trays, napkins, plastic bottles, plastic juice cups, and single-use utensils are going into our schools' total waste that are non biodegradable; for instance, every piece of styrofoam ever created still exists today. Only 9% of plastic waste is recycled, while 12% is incinerated, and the last 79% is accumulated in landfills or the natural environment. (UNEP). If we switch to biodegradable single-use items, the impact is significantly less severe in our waste fills and our future. 

Around 1,322 total students are at Wayne Hills. Since juniors and seniors are allowed to leave for lunch, we can estimate that at least half of students buy lunch every day, if not more- considering that not every junior or senior will leave the building to eat. In one school year, around 180 days, the number of school lunches bought can be estimated at 237,960 lunches, assuming that every student buys lunch every day. Even if we assume that only half the student body buys lunch throughout the year, the number still comes to around 118,980 lunches.

Schools in New Jersey and around the country have already switched from single-use plastics to biodegradable materials, finding it cost effective and vital for saving our planet. We must transition to biodegradable materials for school lunches.