After piloting a successful recycling and composting program at Symmes Elementary, Sycamore applied for and received a $34,000 Hamilton County grant to install waste sorting stations in the cafeterias of the six other school buildings.
Prior to implementing the program, Sycamore's seven schools created an average of 540 bags of trash weekly. After implementation, the schools went from 540 to 122 bags of trash every week, reducing waste hauling bills from $61,000 in 2012 to $49,705 in 2013.