Recycling household vegetable oils in schools

What are we doing?

Sky of leaves Javier Maeso DíazBranch 2978

Obra Social has started up a school-based programme to organise recycling of household vegetable oils in Madrid.

The programme avoids the oil-contamination of millions of litres of water each year, while raising the social and environmental awareness of schoolchildren and their families, creating jobs for persons at the risk of social and job market exclusion and supporting water potabilisation projects in developing countries.

This initiative, the fruit of an agreement between Obra Social, the Environment Area of the municipal government of Madrid and the AFANIAS association provides citizens with a convenient, clean and efficient system for disposing of their used vegetable oils.

Workers with mental disabilities are employed to distribute new containers and pick up the ones that are full and transport them to the plant to be emptied, cleaned and have the oil sent to a processing facility for transformation into biodiesel.

Results

• Part of the proceeds obtained from converting the oils to biofuels has been donated to water potabilisation projects in developing countries.
• In its first year, the system has reached 45 primary schools, three municipal buildings and La Casa Encendida, and recycling containers have been distributed to over 25,000 children for use by their families at home.