COMMUNITY COLOR: Fifth-graders display the flags the school is using to notify local residents of the day’s air quality.
As part of last month’s Earth Week celebrations, students and staff at the Long Beach Island Elementary School in Surf City initiated two new programs – the New Jersey Air Quality Flag Program and the Ocean County Igloo Recycling Project – in addition to artwork and tree plantings to mark both Earth Day and Arbor Day.
The roll-out of the flag program, which utilizes brightly-colored flags to notify residents about outdoor air quality conditions, also coincides with the state’s Air Quality Awareness Week, May 4-8.
GROW TALL: First-grader Valentina Villare waters a tree planted to mark both Earth Week and Arbor Day.
According to the N.J. Department of Environmental Protection, the flags correspond to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Quality Index to communicate air quality in the community. The flag colors represent how clean or polluted the air is daily: green for “good,” yellow for “moderate,” orange for “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” red for “unhealthy” and purple for “very unhealthy.”
School nurse Bianca Aniski said since the school received the flags, the appropriate color flag has been raised by custodians each morning and the school’s “morning show” has included the outdoor air quality report. In addition, an air quality widget is currently on the front page of the school’s website, lbischools.org.
The state program makes these flags available at no cost to eligible partners such as schools, senior centers, summer camps, daycare centers, community centers and county and municipal governments. In addition to the flags themselves, participants receive a presentation on air quality, air quality lessons, assistance to implement the program, guidance materials and other tools.
“By creating public awareness of air quality conditions, individuals and communities can adjust levels of outdoor activity to reduce exposure to air pollution, while still remaining physically active,” said the DEP.
DESIGN TEAM: Fifth-grade SAIL (Student Assisted Interactive Leadership) students sketch a plan for artwork onto the recycling igloo delivered the school as part an Ocean County program.
BEHIND THE SCENES: Custodian Keith Mattner primes the recycling igloo in the schoolyard garden.
The other delivery the school received recently – by crane – was a large recycling igloo. Ocean County, which launched its igloo recycling program in 1989, has invited schools, artists, art groups and volunteer groups to bring the igloo containers back to life with a fresh paint job.
“These ‘igloos’ are maintained by our department and are located all over Ocean County,” as noted on the county’s website. “We have over 100 igloos located at parks, beaches and marinas. In 2022, the igloos alone saved 28 tons of material from littering our environment.”
School custodian Keith Mattner primed the igloo for painting in the schoolyard garden, and teachers Liz Messec and Cathy McBride worked with some of the students to come up with a design for the container.
“Our eight fifth-grade SAIL (Student Assisted Interactive Leadership) leaders worked together to create a design for the recycling igloo,” Messec explained. “Their plan is to paint a representation of the sky, ocean’s surface, native marine life and the ocean floor.”
As of last week, the students had sketched their plan onto the igloo and hoped to begin painting soon.
“The students are thrilled to have been given this responsibility,” Messec remarked. “Cathy McBride and I have collaborated on STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics) projects throughout the year, this being the most recent project. We know the final product is going to be fantastic!”
Also apropos for Earth Week, Aniski said the school was awarded an AtlantiCare “Whole School, Whole Community” stipend to revitalize its rain gardens. “WSCC is comprised of 10 components designed to connect health and academic achievement,” she explained. “Two out of 10 components were required to receive the AtlantiCare stipend. For our school, the connections were gardening as physical activity and a focus on a healthy environment, which extends into our rain gardens.
STEWARDSHIP: An art project completed by first-grade students commemorates Earth Day.
“A rain garden is designed absorb water run-off from our roof that would otherwise enter a storm drain and onward to Barnegat Bay, which is one short block away. Our school was able to include a third WSCC component because the rain gardens are accessible to the public as a pocket park. This winter was unforgiving to the native plants in the rain gardens and the AtlantiCare stipend is timely.”
According to Principal Frank Birney, “It’s been exciting to see students so engaged in initiatives like the New Jersey Air Quality Flag Program and the Ocean County Igloo Recycling Project. These programs give them a chance to connect what they’re learning in the classroom to real-world environmental responsibility, which is exactly what Earth Day is all about.
“We also loved seeing the younger students get involved through the Arbor Day tree planting and Earth Day artwork. Activities like these help build an early appreciation for sustainability and caring for the environment.”
— Juliet Kaszas-Hoch