The Clearfield Area Junior-Senior High School added a couple of new clubs to the list this year, including the Environmental Club. The Environmental Club is run by teachers, Mrs. DeJonge and Mr. Duttry. There are currently nine members in the environmental club. The club officers are as follows: President: Rylee Ogden; Vice President: Danielle Cline; Treasurer: Evan Forcey; Secretary: Peyton Norris. “The main goal is to make a positive impact on our local environment through education and effort,” said Mr. Duttry.

The club is planning on working on many different projects involving bettering the environment. One project they plan on working on is recycling. The current effort in the school is minimal, cardboard is believed to be recycled as of right now. However the issue of excess amount of paper and plastic is at hand. Mr. Duttry addressed this by stating, “The details are being worked out. The thought is to start with just paper. The school goes through many plastic bottles; however plastic is very difficult and expensive to recycle.”

Students who would like to help better the recycling efforts at the school and in the community can reuse, reduce, and recycle. Students can recycle outside of school on Power Avenue behind the St. Francis School and at the Clearfield County Solid Waste Authority in Curwensville. The Clearfield Borough also has curbside pickup available on the first and third Tuesdays. If any students have any questions regarding what should and can be recycled, a great resource to utilize is the EPA: United States Environmental Protection Agency for any questions regarding recycling.

Besides the effort to recycle the Environmental Club is also interested on working with the County’s Conservation District for other projects such as helping plant trees, assisting with watershed management, and learning about stream treatments. Mr. Duttry comments on a bigger project, “Members are also interested in planting a pollinator garden in a local state park (possibly Parker Dam). Other ideas are still in the discussion phase.”

The Environmental Club is excited to help better the efforts to maintain a positive impact on local and global environment. Mr. Duttry wanted to leave the readers with one last notion. He stated, “We only have one Earth, and we should do everything we can to protect it.”