Welcome to The Green Team!

Butterfield Elementary Green Activities

Green Team Leaders: Melanie Long and Julie Feinstein

We are becoming more excited everyday about the redesign of our school because we will have the unique distinction of being The Fayetteville School District’s first certified green school building. We hope to achieve a certified Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating for the school through the U.S. Green Building Council. Several factors will help us with that: we're remodeling the current facility instead of all new construction, we’ll use the school as a teaching tool, we will have a water runoff system, the lighting system will be energy efficient (example: sensors that turn off lights in rooms to save energy when they are not in use), we’ll have a number of bicycle racks and a shower system for employees who bicycle to work, the roof will feature a white membrane surface that reflects light instead of absorbing it and materials used in construction will be bought locally so that less energy is used in transporting them. Our school grounds will have to have some “green” treatment after the building is completed. We have much to look forward to!

Currently we are recycling a number of things. We’re participating in Wal-Mart’s “Dollars for Bags” program by recycling plastic bags. With the “Cans for Cash” program we collect cans in the lounge and cafeteria to be recycled. Our paper recycling bags (for white paper, catalogues and newspapers) are located throughout the building and are picked up by the City’s recycling program. “Simple Solutions” gives us cash for our recycled phones and ink cartridges.

We are in the process of applying for a Fayetteville Public School Education Foundation grant to provide a recycling bin in each classroom and a paper igloo to store the paper until the City Solid Waste Department picks it up. This will reduce trash dumpster waste. We will also be recycling the food packaging waste (paperboard and bottles) from the lounge and cafeteria. A hand-picked team of dedicated 5th graders will man the project.

Butterfield Trail Elementary and Wal-Mart are teamed together in recycling plastic bags. John David Storment and Stephen Storment, Butterfield 5th graders (pictured from left to right), actively help in the recycling program.