That's quite an achievement. But the trustees, Mr Trask (chairman), Marty Hoffart and Brendon Thomas, are especially delighted about the past week's success.
EERST's Paper4Trees programme received the New Zealand Packaging Council's supreme award. "We didn't even know there was a supreme award ... a little trust in Tauranga formed in 2000 won it," said Mr Trask.
The trust also won the Cadbury Community Education Programme category in the bi-annual environmental packaging awards. It headed off the new Love NZ campaign which promotes the recycling of glass, plastic and paper in public places - with heavy advertising on the back of buses.
The judges said Paper4Trees was an outstanding example of a waste minimisation education programme that has delivered compelling metrics of waste reduction.
After the awards night, EERST learned it was receiving its biggest government grant - $199,500 from the Waste Minimisation Fund. The trust is able to expand its programme into more than 1100 schools and preschools in the Auckland region - the only area it hasn't covered in New Zealand.
Environment Minister Nick Smith said schools generated a huge amount of paper and cardboard waste, and the innovative Paper4Trees project enabled them to trade the used paper and cardboard with native trees for their school grounds.
"It helps ensure we build a recycling culture amongst the 200,000 pupils of participating Auckland schools and early childhood centres," Mr Smith said.
EERST, a not-for-profit organisation, buys the distinctive 30-litre green recycling bins from Tauranga's Payless Plastics at wholesale price, and it organises a range of sponsorship to pay for the trees, grown at 36 nurseries. The government and local grants also help run the recycling programme.
In the Western Bay, Bayfair Mall covers 50 per cent of the cost of trees, and slat bed manufacturer Design Mobel and car hire firm Rent-a-Dent have been national sponsors.
Next year, EERST expects to supply more than 40,000 trees. "The programme is just exploding," said Mr Trask. "I must admit six months ago I wondered where we would get the funding from to buy the trees. But a wide range of businesses from real estate to supermarkets, you name it, are supporting us."
The former chief executive of Sport Bay of Plenty, Mr Trask started thinking about the sort of environment he and his partner Iris Thomas' 17 grandchildren would have.
"The planet is chewing up resources and we wanted to leave something for them. We are not zealots. We just wanted to educate people to make their own decisions on reducing waste and recycling," Mr Trask said.
"It's easy and simple and saves you money. By putting the education programme in the schools the children can go home and educate their parents.
"The children see the green bins and know they are for recycling."
EERST is now looking at introducing Water4Schools and Energy4Schools programmes. Schools would be given a water tank as a teaching tool for using and consuming water.