[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 103 (Thursday, July 3, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1099]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   RECOGNIZING OCOSTA HIGH SCHOOL'S NATIONAL RECYCLING PROGRAM AWARD

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                           HON. DEREK KILMER

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, July 3, 2014

  Mr. KILMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Ocosta High School 
in Westport, Washington for receiving the 2014 American Forest & Paper 
Association's School Recycling Award for Partnerships.
   These partnership awards, offered by the AFPA, seek to recognize and 
promote new and innovative programs that increase the amount of paper 
recovered for recycling. Ocosta High School established a paper 
recycling program in 1992 when the nearby Port of Grays Harbor 
recycling program closed down. Since then, Ocosta High School's 
recycling program has evolved into a district-wide program, working not 
only with students at all grade levels, but local businesses and the 
community as a whole.
   Ocosta High School also operates a baling machine which allows them 
to track the success of the program and compare amounts of paper 
recovered with past records. In 2013, over two decades since beginning 
the program, Ocosta High School recovered 24 tons of paper and paper-
based products.
   Programs such as Ocosta High School's recycling program are an 
essential component of our work for developing and expanding renewable 
resources. The commitment we share will ensure sustainability for 
future generations.
   In receiving this special recognition, I am confident that Ocosta 
High School will inspire other schools to create new and innovative 
programs that will increase the amount of paper and paper-based 
packaging recovered for recycling. The high school's work for 
sustainability and environmental awareness has had a substantial 
benefit to our region and to the nation.
   Mr. Speaker, I would like to close by sending my best wishes for the 
school's continued success, and again applauding Ocosta High School's 
students and faculty on receiving the 2014 American Forest & Paper 
Association's School Recycling Award for Partnerships. I am proud to 
recognize their dedication to environmental stewardship and to their 
community, today, in the United States Congress.

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