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The Huron Expositor • December 2, 2009 Page 13
1
Bottledwater ban in schools takes effect Jan. 1
.
St 'it Slat1r
Some changes have already
been made in many schools, and
full restrictions on the sale of
bottled water in the Avon Mait-
land District School Board come
into effect Jan. 1, 2010.
"1 think we're ahead of the
curve. The municipalities are do-
ing it
o-ingit and I see no reason why
the school boards shouldn't," said
Stratford trustee Doug Pratley;
at a regular board meeting Tues-
day, Nova 10. 4
Pratley along with represen-
tatives from school staff, students
and administrators — serves as
the trustee representative on
the Environmental Leadership
and Education Committee, which
first brought forward the recom-
mendation early this year.
A 'Jan. 27,. 2009 boardmotion,
in keeping with that committee's
recommendation, called for a pro-
hibition on "the purchase and/or
sale of bottled water . . on all
(board) property, except where
required for medical or emergen-
cy purposes."
The motion called for implemen-
tation for the beginning of 2010,
but some parts have already been
put in place.
According to an ,update report
provided to trustees at the Nov.
10 meeting, vending machines
were removed from all elemen-
tary schools at the conclusion of
the 2008-09 school calendar, and
bottled water has been removed
from all secondary school ma-
chines.
• "I would estimate we had 'ma-
chines
ma -chines in between 50-75 per cent
of our (elementary) schools," ex-
plained Avon Maitland purchas-
ing manager Brad Hill, in an in-
terview after the meeting.
Machines remain in place in all
secondary schools, meanwhile,
albeit with an altered offering as
a result of the recent changes.
Hill noted the elementary school
machines used to dispense both
•
fruit juice and bottled water.
The juices were removed some
time ago due to revised Ministry
of Education guidelines — based
on Health ministry recommenda-
tions - on fruit juice serving sizes
for younger children.
The machines could not accom-
modate the smaller bottles; as
a result, the elementary school
machines,at the`' time of their
removal, dispensed only bottled
water. •
In secondary schools, where
larger serving -size fruit juices
remain available in vending ma-
chines, bottled water has been
removed and replaced.
According to Hill, this has gen-
erally meant the intrqduction
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MON., DEC 7TH -
Seaforth Agric
bio LB. BOX OF FLORIDA
Seedless Navel Oranges
or Ruby Red Grapefruit
:22.00
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of "no -calorie" and "low -calorie"
drinks, often described as "vita-
min water" or "vitamin -enhanced
beverages."
The next step, scheduled for
full implementation Jan. 1, is the
removal of bottled water from
school cafeterias.
Hill said the ban was already
negotiated into contracts with
each of the schools' food services
providers (five of the board's nine
high schools are served by the
Chartwell's corporation; the rest
are served by independent con-
tractors).
Cheryl Peach, a principal who
served on the Environmental
Leadership and Education Com-
mittee, was careful to note this is
not an outright ban.
"We will be allowing students, if
they bring it from home, to have
bottled water," Peach explained.
The sale of bottled water will also
be allowed for special events at
the school, such as sports tourna-
ments or other extra -curricular
activities.
With those exceptions in mind,
the committee recommended that
schools "need to provide recycling
facilities for plastic bottles."
Peach added, however, that stu-
dents have already shown they're
ready for the changes.
More and more students are
bringing their own refillable wa-
ter bottles and refilling them at
fountains,
And some school -related or-
ganizations — such as student
councils or school councils — have
undertaken refillable water bot-
tle sales campaigns as a form of
fundraising.
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