Back To School Waste

BACK TO SCHOOL WASTE HOW CONSUMERS CAN HELP FIX IT As summer winds down and young people make their way back into the classroom, consumers are flooding stores to fill their carts with new school clothes, notebooks, pencils and other essentials. But do they think of its negative impact on the environment? Let's take a look at back to school squandering. BACK TO SCHOOL CONSUMPTION •55.5 Million In 2011, 55.5 million students will be enrolled in the nation's schools -from elementary through high schools 75Percent CLOTHES ENCOUNTERS of consumers plan to send their kids to school in new clothes this year $7.4 Billion The amount of money spent purchasing new items at family clothing stores in August 2010 •35-45% PAPER TRAIL of the trash in the solid waste stream comes from businesses and institutions like schools Of that share, 40 percent of the total waste stream is composed of paper product PLATE WASTE •67 Lbs. The average American school- lunch aged child wastes an estimated 67 pounds in discarded school lunch packaging every school year (That's 18,760 pounds of lunch waste per average elementary school) WASTING GAS Keeping Composted Almost 80 percent of all 50 percent of school-aged the waste generated by Amount of gas that would be children who live less than a a school could be 60,000 Gallons saved if only 6 percent of those mile from school are driven recycled or composted children walked to school STILL, CONSUMERS ARE GETTING SMARTER They're Planning to Spend the Same or Less This Year According to a Pricegrabber survey Back to School Budget Breakdown Back To School Spending Intentions Most consumers indicated that they will shop for school supplies such as pens, pencils, notebooks 48% of shoppers plan to spend $250 or more on back-to-school and binders. 48% purchases in 2011 SCHOOL SUPPLIES 77% 25% will spend $500 25% or more PLAN TO SPEND LESS? APPAREL 58% Most Will Buy Based on Value, Not Vanity FOOTWEAR (45% 38% What are your reasons for deciding which back-to-school items to purchase? SCHOOL BAGS 30% VALUE REQUIRED ELECTRONICS (27% PLAN TO SPEND THE SAME PACK APPAREL ACCESSORIES 17% 82% 45% 40% REPLACEMENT CHILD WANTED IT BEAUTY PRODUCTS 13% BEDDING 10% 30% 22% PLAN TO SPEND MORE? TRENDY/ INFLUENCED CALCULATORS 8% FASHIONABLE BY FRIENDS SMALL APPLIANCES 5% 22% 12% 2% 2011 (Percent of Respondents) 2011 (Percent of Respondents) 2011 (Percent of Respondents, Based on How Much They Will Spend on Each Category) TIPS ON RETURNING TO SCHOOL WITH AN ECO-CONSCIENCE • Buy notebooks with recycled, 30 percent post-consumer paper Instead of plastic or paper bags, use reusable containers ABC Donate old textbooks Use nontoxic products and supplies Resist buying new outfits and re-appropriate old ones Try carpooling, walking or biking when possible .......... Sources: NPD Group, US Census Bureau, Environmental Protection Agency, National Center for Education Statistics, Hennepin County, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). ethical Ocean" Created By COLUMN FIVE "e-commerce with a conscience" .