Kenya needs to intensify recycling processes to take advantage of circular economy and protect its environmental resources that are choking under heavy pollution.
Peter Burugu—the director of World Plastics, a Kiambu county based manufacturer of packaging products—said that the country should invest across different levels ranging from awareness and incentives among consumers and manufacturers to putting in place recycling policies.
Speaking on Wednesday when World Plastics organised a clean-up of Limuru town, Burugu said this would help achieve a circular economy, which emphasises sustainable production and consumption.
“For us to have a circular economy in the country, we have to have proper waste management practices," he said.
He said in the field of waste management, extended producer responsibility is a strategy to add to all environmental costs associated with a product through a product life to the market price of that product.
“It is also a policy approach, under which producers are given significant responsibility either financial or physical for the treatment or disposal of post-consumer products.
"The government has a right to extend the responsibility to the manufacturers to make sure their products do not litter the environment. For this to happen we also need partnership with the government and urge the government to come up with structures to enhance such partnerships.
“Your waste is a product for someone else. Do not throw the waste away, get an idea on how it can be used to enrich other people’s lives as well as take care of the environment,” he said.
Limuru subcounty administrator Said Aila emphasised the importance that such exercises play in environmental conversation, noting that it sensitises the people and companies to different aspects of environmental conservation.
“Where we are heading as a society, we need to turn our waste into useful raw materials or something that can be processed to be of value to society,” he said.
“Today's clean-up is not just about the place being clean but the most important theme is about sustainability to the people, business to keep our environment clean, put waste in the right places, we go on with the campaign for recycling and also have our people planting more trees and generally taking care of mother nature,” Aila said.
World Plastics administrator Gibson Ngugi also emphasised the need to minimise waste among households and companies by increasing the amount they recycle.
He lauded the National Environment Management Authority for introducing a scheme where makers of plastics can take back their products from consumers once they are finished with them for recycling, a move that hugely enhances environmental protection.
“Waste that we generate is useful to that other person. What is waste to you is of help to another person. Waste food for instance is useful to pig farmers or people rearing dogs,” he said.
“We are happy that Nema came up with the take back scheme. Once you have used that polythene, you can take it back to the manufacturer or to the shop you got it from for recycling purposes.”
-Edited by SKanyara
