Expert colouring skills will be rewarded with copies of Nikki Slade Robinson's book, That's Not Junk, this month.

Keep Whakatāne District Beautiful had 60 copies of the conservation-themed book by the Eastern Bay children's author and illustrator to give away in its annual colouring competition this year.

Published in the Beacon and open throughout the school holidays, the competition saw over 200 entries this year across 10 Whakatāne district schools.

Keep Whakatāne District Beautiful Committee is a council supported community group focused on environmental, anti-litter initiatives and civic pride.

Chairman Andrew Iles said it was "heartening" to see so many young people taking part and clearly caring deeply about the environment.

This year, Iles tasked Beacon reporters with the job of judging the competition, resulting in some fierce battles over preferred winners.

Along with the entries, senior students from the Kōtuku Room at Apanui School also submitted letters of concern about environmental issues, addressed to Whakatāne District Council.

The class has been learning about the pollution of the oceans with plastic, the effects this has on sea creatures and the breakdown of plastics into micro- and nano-plastics in the water supply.

“Did you know that 79 percent of plastic is put in landfills or the natural environment, 9 percent is recycled and 12 percent is burned?” one student said.

They provided some bright ideas about ways the council could help reduce the pollution.

These included placing pictures of sea creatures injured by plastic waste on rubbish bins and drains to remind people of the effects of littering.

Regular organised clean-up days on beaches and at water sources in the hills were another idea.

One student came up with the idea of a subsidy on rates for anyone who picked up a bag full of rubbish each month.

Iles said these letters would be read closely by the committee and all ideas considered.