In addition to the plastic ban in Kenya, there are just as many waste management systems that can be adopted by Kenya and the world in general. This refers to collection, transportation, and disposal of garbage, sewage and other waste products. Some countries do take their waste management activities and they have invested a lot in this financing great innovative waste management ideas. Some of these have actually been implemented and have worked. What are these systems?
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| Mr. Wheel Trash |
1. Mr. Trash Wheel
This is a technology that harnesses the power of the sun and the wind to pick up waste from the Jones Falls river. It uses the river`s current to turn the wheels lifting trash from the river and dumping it into a dumpster barge attached to it. When the power from the river currents is not enough to power the wheels, a solar panel provides for the deficit to keep it running. Once the dumpster is full, it is towed away by a boat and a new dumpster is attached to it.
2. A Movie Ticket For Your Plastic Waste Material?
In Colombia you are actually rewarded for recycling your plastic waste matter. ECOBOT, reverse vending machines, is an initiative that encourages people to recycle their wastes. They were installed in most popular of places like malls and any time you would deposit your plastic wastes you would earn yourself lottery tickets, movie tickets or even some shopping money. All the plastic bags collected are then sent to recycling factories.
3. Green Dot System
Well, on top of paying for standardisation marks on their products manufacturers in Germany have to pay for a green dot as well on their packaging. As such, the more packaging the higher the fees thus businesses reduces on packaging. The green dot system have led to production of less paper, glass and less metal wastes used in packaging. The system having been a success is being replicated across the continent of Europe.
4. Make Roads Out Of Plastic
A Chemistry proffessor in India was able to formulate a way with which common plastic waste material was converted into a bitumen(Asphalt) substitute which is used in road construction. He was able to take care of environmental issues but also costs as it is cheaper by 15% to use the plastics in place of bitumen.
5. Amusement or ornaments from plastic waste material
A Uganda uses plastic wastes to create an amusement park. Eco Art Uganda is a group of individuals dedicated to creating environmental awareness. This has worked to the benefit of the community at so many levels in that they have created fun from waste materials, they educate children and most importantly they conserve the environment.
A cameroonian on the other hand has turned the plastic waste material into beautiful jewellery. A group led by Constance Gubong Tangu were fed up seeing how negative the plastic waste was impacting on their environment hence they came up with that initiative to turn them into ornaments, beautiful for that matter.
These are just some of the many innovative ways with which waste is managed all over the world. Some are proving to be very effective to the extent that countries like Sweden do actually import waste to run their energy programmes. Which of these can work in Kenya and similar countries?
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