There are 58 pupils (31 girls and 27 boys) attending St. Cronan’s NS, Roscrea, Co. Tipperary.The committee is made up of pupils, teachers, parents’ representative and a community representative. The committee meets every Friday after assembly. The whole school attends.
One pupil from each classroom is chosen to become a litter warden for a week, so there are three litter wardens on duty each week.
For the Environmental Review on energy, St. Cronan’s:
Did a hot water survey
Did a sun survey to check where the sun is at different times of the day, which showed them when the lights need to be on and where they can cut back on using the lights.
Did an oil survey – dipping a bamboo stick into the oil tank to check how much oil was being used in a month.
Took electricity meter readings.
Recorded usage of lights.
Recorded how long computer were used each day.
The school has continued to record oil consumption per month, sun shining into each classroom every day, electricity meter reading weekly, daily temperature, daily light usage, daily computer usage. These records are analysed at the weekly committee meeting and compared with previous results to monitor progress.
Other activities in their action include:
Turning off lights.
Turning off electrical equipment rather than leaving on standby.
Surveys on seasonal variations in energy usage.
Closing doors and windows to keep in the heat.
Saving energy at home.
St. Cronan’s used an "Energy to Carbon Dioxide" calculator to get a rough estimate of CO2 emissions as a result of energy use in the school. This calculator is provided on the website of the UK National Energy Foundation - www.natenergy.org.uk/convert.htm. The calculator can also be used to work out CO2 emissions from school buses, cars, planes, etc.
With regard to litter and waste, three litter wardens collect litter every day. The wardens also pick up litter on the street outside the school, supervised by a teacher. Litter is sorted and recycled. The wardens record the amount of litter they pick up. The school continues to recycle whatever materials they can, including bubble rap, paper, cardboard, mouthwash cups, etc. They also reuse materials for art & craft e.g. tinfoil is reused to decorate pictures.
The pupils were asked how the experience of Green-Schools benefited their school. Some of the answers are shown below:
"Being in a Green School has made me understand how important it is to save energy. We have been wearing extra clothes so we don’t have to turn on the heating and using the natural sunlight so we don’t have to turn on the lights." By Michaela Duffy
"The Green Schools helped me to save energy at school and at home. I learned about renewable and non-renewable resources. I now know that non-renewable resources can and will run out. We will have to save a lot more resources now!!" By Shane Davis
"I have learned all about Energy and Recycling and now we can tell our children." By Rachel Williams