School eco committee visit energy from waste plant

The eco committee from St Martin’s School in Northwood had a fantastic day visiting the Lakeside Educational Centre near Heathrow. The boys were also able to visit the nearby plant which uses advanced technology to process non-recyclable waste and produces enough electricity to power around 50,000 homes. Raffi Chinnick, 11, said: “We put on safety goggles, a luminous jacket, a pair of gloves and a protective helmet and watched through a glass window as the rubbish arrived and was then picked up by an enormous grabber and dropped into the furnace.” Kadique Douglas, 12, added: “It’s amazing how much rubbish we all produce and we saw it arrive in huge trucks every few minutes.” The boys were given the opportunity at the centre to build the blades of their own wind turbine using cardboard pizza boxes, which were then tested for durability. They also had to sort their lunch waste into recyclable and non-recyclable items. Naomi Wood, who led the trip on Thursday, June 9, said: “We need to teach the next generation about waste management and the importance of recycling. Visiting the centre and plant was a wonderful learning opportunity for the boys.”