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BACKGROUND Measure D Allocation The City of Pleasanton receives annually approximately $260,000 in Measure D funds from the Alameda County Recycling Board and an additional amount of approximately $75,000 in Import Mitigation Funds. Of this amount, approximately $80,000 is used by the City to subsidize the City's residential curbside recycling programs through the direct purchase of blue bags and green waste containers. Other programs, such as the annual Electronic Waste Collection event, are also funded from these funds. In previous years funds have been designated to assist the schools in the implementation of recycling programs through the Go Green Initiative. In the current fiscal year, a majority of Measure D funds have been designated to support the City's green waste/food scrap recycling program. Go Green Initiative The Go Green Initiative has continued to provide the City an opportunity to partner with the school district, parents, teachers and children to implement a comprehensive educational program that fosters environmental awareness and recycling programs in the classroom. The program seeks to establish an educational climate in the classroom that supports the basic principles of conservation and environmental awareness. The intended results are to teach children to be responsible caretakers of the planet and to heighten community awareness of, and participation in, environmentally responsible behavior. In previous years, the Measure D grant was given either to the Go Green Initiative or shared with the Pleasanton Unified School District. Past years' allocations have been based on sustaining or starting up programs at each of the sixteen PUSD schools. Several years ago the City provided upwards of $90,000 to initiate the GGI program. Staff has been working with a newly formed Environmental Awareness Committee in the PUSD, which will now administer the funds. Schools will be able to apply for the environmental funds from the PUSD Environmental Awareness Committee and a coordinated financial, collection, and monitoring system will be in place. Due to some changes in the Go Green administration, staff did not receive a formal request for Go Green funds at the beginning of the 2006-07 school year, although funds were budgeted. At the March 6, 2007 City Council meeting, an $18,000 grant was made available for the remainder of the 2006-07 school year. At this time, staff is looking ahead at the next school year and proposing a formula equal to $2,000 per school which would total to $32,000 which would be made available July 1, 2007. In addition to the annual allocation requested, staff is recommending aone-time grant of $10,000 as a partnership project with Hearst Elementary School to purchase an Earth Tub. The Tub is designed specifically for on site composting of food waste and soiled paper products. It is a fully enclosed composting vessel featuring power mixing, compost aeration, and biofiltration of all process air. Yard waste and food waste can be loaded through a hatchway in the cover; periodically woodchips and dry materials like Page 2 of 3