Tahoma Senior High School has been placed in the national spotlight for its student-led effort to implement green operations at its campus. On Monday the school’s Green Team received the President’s Environmental Youth Award from an EPA official.

When Cort Hammond started as a student at Tahoma Senior High School, he was surprised to find that the school did not have an environmental club, a staple among many high schools.

Looking to cut down on the amount of trash the school produced, he formed

a Green Team in 2008. By the end of the year, the school’s garbage output had been decreased from 100 to 60 cubic yards per week, which saves the school $24,000 in landfill expenses.

“These students have turned the tables on their teachers and parents—they are teaching the adults and their own peers how to lead greener lives,” said Linda Anderson-Carnahan, the associate director of the Office of Ecosystems, Tribal and Public Affairs at EPA’s Seattle office in a statement.

“They are doing amazing work in their community and showing how an entrepreneurial spirit can make a difference for the environment and the bottom line.”

In addition, the club has brought recycling, conservation, and community involvement to the high school. Other projects include an Adopt-a-Road program, Styrofoam recycling, ecological events, and lunch-room food waste collection.

The Green Team meets every Tuesday after school in Room 211.

Their website can be found at http://swift.tahoma.wednet.edu/ths/eclub/index.php

Since 1971, The President’s Environmental Youth Awards program has encouraged individuals, school classes, summer camps, public interest groups, and youth organizations to promote environmental awareness and positive community involvement. Each year, young people from around the country, kindergarten through high school students, are invited to participate.

For more information on the President’s Environmental Youth Awards program, go to:

http://www.epa.gov/peya/