Students show the way to tackle household waste

Christ Nagar International School (CNIS) is trying to tackle the problem of waste disposal in their locality. The school will distribute a particular species of fish, which scavenges on biodegradable waste, to the neighbouring households in Kanakanagar Residents’ Association.

 “The species of fish is called ‘Malaysian Vala,’ said K Preeti, a teacher at the CNIS. “It is a scavenger which will feed on all the biodegradable waste.”

 As part of the school’s project on ‘My Ecological Footprint,’ the students had recently done a survey on the waste disposal in the households at Kanakanagar so that they could get a better understanding of the waste management issue, she said.

 “They found that many households couldn’t be bothered with the time and investment required for setting up a biogas plant or pipe-compost,” said Preeti. “So by distributing these fish among them, we hope it will provide an easier solution. Our school will source them for `3 a fish and we hope to get 500 of them.”

 Earlier this month, a group of students had presented this idea as a solution for waste disposal at an environmental youth conference held at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, where the presentation was widely appreciated.

 Their effort was inaugurated at the school’s Christmas celebrations when Mayor K Chandrika handed over a pair of the ‘Malaysian Vala’ to the president of Kanakanagar Residents’ Association.

 A small fish pond containing some scavenger fish has also been set up in  the school to dispose of the food waste.

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