In September 2016, the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA) launched the Used Oil Project, funded by the Recycling Oil Saves the Environment (ROSE) Foundation – a national non-profit organisation which promotes the environmentally responsible management of used vehicle oils and related waste in South Africa.
The three-year project aims to address the illegal and harmful dumping of used vehicle oil by educating pupils about the importance of disposing of oil correctly, which should be done by taking it to accredited processing facilities located throughout the country.
Over the past few months the project – initially being rolled out in the Western Cape – has seen WESSA develop and distribute educational resource materials to 60 schools in the province covering the theme of used oil disposal.
An informative workshop was recently held at Helderberg Nature Reserve in Somerset West, to support learning about this important issue by introducing teachers to the educational resources and equipping them with lesson plans for grades 4 to 9.
Learning has been further incentivised at the participating schools through the introduction of a poster competition that focuses on responsible used oil disposal, with evaluation criteria linked to the curriculum.
Pupils stand to win an educational trip to a local used oil recycling facility.
The Rose Foundation has been an active supporter of WESSA for many years, and has been a WESSA business member since 2013.
In 2015 they received WESSA’s Corporate Award, in recognition of their ongoing commitment to the environment through their promotion of the environmentally responsible management of used lubricating oils and related waste in South Africa, as well as for their commitment to environmental education at schools.
Schools and teachers interested in the programme can contact WESSA for details, including particulars of the poster competition.
Email lorraine@wessa.co.za for more information.
WESSA is a leading implementer of high-impact environmental and conservation initiatives in southern Africa.
It has a 90-year history of enabling individuals and organisations to use natural resources sustainably, and the priority areas of their work include the international eco-labels of Eco-Schools, Blue Flag and Green Key; environmental education and skills development training.
They also work towards the conservation of life-supporting biodiversity and water resources; climate change mitigation and adaptation; and environmental governance.
Visit www.wessa.org.za
The Rose Foundation has seen cooperation between many of the key players in the industry to voluntarily form and finance an organisation to solve an important environmental problem.
This approach has been an inspirational model for lubricant industries in many other countries.
For more information, visit www.rosefoundation.org.za
