MARYSVILLE — Matt Edgerton had already noticed that Marysville Middle School, where he works as a custodian, was using Styrofoam trays for its lunches.
When his union, SEIU International, launched a contest encouraging members to get involved in their communities, it spurred him to suggest a change.
Edgerton wrote an essay about how he could work with the Marysville School District to find more environmentally friendly trays for the students’ lunches, and entered the essay in the union’s Everybody Wins contest.
Edgerton, 26, placed among the top three in the national contest, out of about 450 entries received. He’ll be in San Juan, Puerto Rico, this weekend for the contest’s awards ceremony, where he’ll find out where among the top three he placed.
If he wins, he’ll receive $20,000 that would go to the school district to implement his idea. Other awards in the contest are $5,000, $4,000 and $3,000.
“Regardless if I won the contest or not, it was something that needed to be done,” Edgerton said of replacing the Styrofoam trays. He said the contest “triggered me to do some research. And then it got me motivated.”
In Edgerton’s short essay — the contest limit was 300 words — he focused on getting all the affected parties together to see how a change could be made. Those involved would include the principal, the PTA, food-service managers, the maintenance manager and a student representative, along with district management.
Edgerton found that the school district uses 900,000 Styrofoam trays per year, 180,000 of them at Marysville Middle School. Styrofoam is not recyclable and does not break down quickly after it’s been discarded.
The district uses plastic, reusable trays at other schools that have enough dishwashing capacity, district finance director Jim Baker said.
Baker said it’s not known to what extent the district will be able to make the changeover. He said he’s waiting to see where Edgerton places in the contest, to see if he wins $20,000 for the school district or one of the lesser prizes.
Regardless, the district will feel obligated to use the prize money toward making a change, Baker said.
“What we want to do is follow his suggestion and get rid of Styrofoam in our waste stream, period,” Baker said.
Regarding Edgerton, Baker said, “We’re very excited for him.”
Edgerton believes the idea will reap dividends however far it goes. The district is already going in an environmentally friendly direction, he said — the custodial department is using all “green” chemicals — and he hopes that getting different parties involved will have a ripple effect.
Also, his union has launched a “green negotiating” campaign, in which union leaders are incorporating environmental considerations into their bargaining with employers.
“We’ll all become closer because of how we got rid of the Styrofoam,” Edgerton said.
Reporter Bill Sheets: 425-339-3439 or sheets@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
