The Ursuline Secondary School, Blackrock, Cork Having already won a Unesco Young Environmental Award the school is ahead of the eco curve by removing single use plastic bottles from the school campus. Both students and teachers at the 245 pupil secondary school have taken the initiative to replace single use plastic one step at a time. By introducing reusable stainless- steel water bottles, a simple and practical step that works for everyone the school will reduce their plastic waste output by an estimated 1000 plastic bottles each month. The steel water bottles were bought for students using funds raised by a sponsored swim from the Port of Cork to Blackrock Village which raised €4000. Niamh Connolly, (5th year), principal Patrick McBeth, and past student Lisa Cummins joined Rowan Walsh (2nd Year student) who was the fastest girl in the 3.8km swim, and the fourth fastest overall, with a time of 42.35.
The school now hope to instal a water fountain — using funding from a sponsored walk. Read more about the schools campaign by visiting the school website: http://ursulinecork.com/blog-post.php?blid=20 and reading an article in The Examiner
