For sometime now, great concerns and fears have been raised about the menace of plastic waste in the cities, particularly the nation’s capital city of Accra. Indeed, the situation is very horrible and embarrassing. A quick stroll around shows it all. Empty plastic bags are scattered and flying the streets, markets and lorry stations. The drains, gutters and culverts are heavily choked with the trash. And even office and school premises are not spared! Evidently, the massive plastic waste around is not only an eyesore. It creates a deplorable insanitary condition that poses a health hazard to the people, hence the outcry.
How do we deal with this situation? More precisely, what is the efficient and effective solution to the plastic waste problem? Over the years, clean-up exercise have been carried out from time to time by various groups of people, yet no desirable results have been achieved. It has been observed that the production and sale of sachet water (popularly called “pure water”) constitutes the bulk of plastic waste. And that is why a proposal has been made to ban the product. But is this measure expedient, fair and advisable, taking certain relevant factor into consideration?
First, there are many food items which are packaged in plastic materials. These include ice cream, yoghurt, biscuits, sweets, drinks, chips, and many more being sold in the market. People buy and consume them and throw the empty packs around, generating filth in the environment. In this regard, is it fair to single out “pure water” to be banned and leave the other products?
Second, the production and sale of “pure water” has become a viable business venture, creating employment opportunities and a profitable trade for a large number of youth, not to mention its advantage of distributing packages of clean and cold water for people to drink. Yes, with sachet water, it is simple, easy and cheap to quench one’s thirst at a spot. In view of these considerations, it is obvious that the intended ban on “pure water” would have adverse effects. Thus, there is the need to look for more appropriate ways and means of solving the plastic waste problem.
Apparently, the solution lies in the general waste management system which involves the process of collection, disposal and recycling of waste that is, turning waste into good products for industrial and agricultural use.
This is the essence of the concept: From Waste to Wealth. To ensure efficient and effective waste management system, workers must be employed to sweep and clean the streets, markets and lorry station daily. A fleet of trucks is needed to dispose of the waste in time to prevent its accumulation and deterioration, while plant and machinery must be assembled for the recycling instead of dumping the waste at land sites in the vicinity, a practice that creates environmental pollution and a health hazard to the people.
Indeed, the open waste disposal method is very unhygienic and outmoded. Thus the option is modern waste management which is integrated in the scheme of metropolitan administration and given priority attention. Fortunately, waste management companies, namely ZOOMLION and Ghana Waste Recycling, are on the ground, helping to tackle the waste problem. They must be fully resourced and supported, while additional ones should be established to complement their services. It is all in the pursuit of solving the waste problem efficiently and effectively.
BY JOS ANYIMA-ACKAH AN ADVERTISING CONSULTANT
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