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Our hypothesis was that our community was using recyclable water bottles at the national average of 167 bottles per person. We contacted our Atlantic County Utilities Authority to test this hypothesis. We found out that we actually double the average. According to ACUA records, we recycle about 22,212,500 plastic bottles. With a rate of 24% recycled in our county, this means that 70,339,583 bottles are in our landfills. This is an average of 341 bottles per person since our population is 271,000. Once we discovered this, we knew there was even a greater need to educate our community about the dangers of plastics to our environment and ask them to pledge to change! Our small community alone adds toxins to our environment through 70 million bottles in landfills!

Currently we have 758 pledges to stop using recyclable bottles and starting to use reusable bottles. We estimate that these pledges rid our community and environment of 258,478 bottles!
Of these pledges, we have the following statistics to share per grade level: K-15; 1 – 2; 2 – 47; 3- 50; 4- 69; 5 – 108; 6 – 93; 7 – 107; 8- 132; 9 – 2; 11- 5, 12 – 1; college – 50; finished school – 19.

We have observed changes in our teachers who used to bring in gallon plastic bottles of water for their coffee machines now use Brita filters. Almost all teachers use reusable bottles. Students are bringing reusable bottles in their lunch and also during sports practice. Thus we have qualitative and quantitative data that shows that our advocacy campaign to rise above plastics has worked!