The Environmental Action Club has been quite busy here in Mayo High School. According to the Mayo Club Hub, the Environmental Club “strives to educate the student body about environmental issues and take sustainable measures in our schools and communities.” Mr. Carter, the club’s moderator, put it another way, stating that their focus is “to promote environmental awareness around the community.” The emphasis is on the Mayo High School’s campus and on promoting awareness to all students, staff, and families: “We try to do what we can to improve what we have the opportunity to [work with] around the area.”

The Environmental Action Club started during the 2020 pandemic, with students doing research on environmental issues. Later on, more projects were set, including campus clean-ups, and an “adopt-a-highway,” where students pick up trash along selected highway roads. Other, more recent initiatives include trying to eliminate plastic silverware in the cafeteria, delivering kitchen scraps to compost sites in Rochester, conducting a recycling audit, and working on a few more campus clean-ups, which have been needed more often due to excessive trash and litter being left around campus, particularly around the Door 6 entrance as well as in the parking lots.

The members of the Environmental Action Club hope to clean the lots more often, possibly every 2-3 weeks, but you can do your part to help, even if you don’t join the club: don’t litter, and don’t let others get away with it. Trash Cans in parking lots have helped the messy issue a bit, but more work still needs to be done. We are all responsible for our environment, and we should take pride in our campus. “You surround yourself in this environment all day long. I don’t understand why you wouldn’t want to keep it clean,” Sadie Willcomm said. Besides that, if you are a member of the Mayo Honor Society, you can earn volunteer hours for participating in the campus cleanups.

Aside from keeping the school clean, junior Marlee Hoekstra explained that the Environmental Action Club is currently working on a new project: researching water quality due to reports of polluted and contaminated water in Olmsted county. The members are currently trying to obtain research kits from the Rochester Public Works and Olmsted County to collect water quality data by testing local waters, such as at Silver Lake, Cascade Lake, and the Zumbro River. They plan to use their data to come up with solutions that will provide better water quality, while protecting the habitat and those who come out to enjoy the water through boating, swimming, and fishing.

(L-R) Kylee Wittwer (11), Marlee Hoekstra (11), Jiorja Jensen (11), Sadie Willcomm (11), Ben Weiland (9) due much to improve our campus each month.

Environmental Action Club is making a difference every day, and the members want you to join them: “I think it’s a good way to connect with friends because anyone can go to campus cleanups at our school,” Jiorja Jensen said.

There’s no doubt that these members have been working hard in order to keep Mayo High School as clean as possible and creating a welcoming atmosphere. The Environmental Action Club encourages students to give back, not just to their environment, but the planet as a whole. Whether it’s picking up your trash or learning more about environmental issues, learning about proper recycling or how to avoid microplastics, if you want to make a difference, the Environmental Action Club is for you.

They meet every other Friday morning at 7:40am in Room 2-108; plan on attending one of their meetings soon.

Google Classroom code: m7yxmbc

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