By Christiana Miller | Special Contributor

Notre Dame High School, Lawrenceville, has been working on conservation for a number of years and has recently made energy improvements within the school and throughout the campus.

The initiative specifically started about two years ago when members of the Notre Dame community realized how much of an impact they have beyond the confines of the campus itself, both locally and on a global scale. The project gained momentum through Notre Dame’s Environmental Club, led by Biology teacher Hope Bauch.

In the cafeteria, the Environmental Club created signs that explain what type of waste should be thrown away in each respective wastebasket. The club is proactively encouraging students to make a conscious effort to recycle. The school has also implemented a uniform standard for trash cans to assist with streamlined recycling: blue for recyclables and white for trash.

Apart from recycling, Notre Dame has made an effort to reduce the amount of energy it uses, and the installation of solar panels on the school building is expected to begin next summer. The school has also installed fluorescent lighting, which reduces the consumption of electricity while still providing suitable light in the hallways and classrooms.

Notre Dame’s campus is decorated with beautiful flowers; however, the flowers are not solely for decorative purposes. The Environmental Club has planted a rain garden.

“In appearance, the rain garden is pleasing to the eye, while underground the plants and soil filter unwanted erosive materials that are carried through water runoff,” said Bauch. “The rain garden is an effective way to ensure clean water with no toxic materials.”

Notre Dame has received Energy Star recognition for the advancements it has made. Compared with a national average of a 50-percent reduction in energy, the high school campus has achieved an 89-percent reduction.

Looking forward, Notre Dame aspires to make use of composite recycling because it is a more efficient way to dispose properly of a large variety of materials.  

School president Barry Breen remarked, “As an educational institution, we teach the relevance of inheriting the world. We [Notre Dame faculty] want our students to inherit a better world, and that can’t be done without caring for the environment. If we are not teaching this, then we are not doing our job as a school.”

Christiana Miller is a senior intern in Notre Dame High School’s communications/public relations department.