By George M.O. Williams
The Environment Protection Agency Sierra Leone (EPA-SL) on Friday June 9, concluded plastic waste collection exercise, as part of the commemoration of the World Environment Day.
This year’s World Environment Day is themed: “Beat Plastic Pollution”, with a key focus on solutions to reduce plastic pollution in the environment. The Day also attract Global attention and solicit collective action to deal with issues affecting the environment.
The plastic waste collection exercise lasted for four days in Freetown and was climaxed with a grand ceremony at the Tourist Board on Friday. Similarly, the plastic waste collection exercise was also carried out in the regional headquarters towns of Bo, Makeni, Kenema and Kono.
Acting Director, Minister of Environment Environmental Quality Control and Management, Edwin Baimba, commended the Agency for organizing the paste collection exercise. He said that the exercise will help raise awareness on the hazards of plastic pollution in the country.
He added that plastic is one of the most popular resources in modern world because it is cheap, easy to produce, durable and easy to carry.
Baimba alluded that most of the plastic produced globally are designed to be thrown away after being used only once, which he said has resulted in single-use disposable plastics waste accumulation.
“According to UNEP’s [United Nations Environmental Programme] report, only nine percent of the nine billion tonnes of plastic the world has ever produced has been recycled, most ends up in landfills, dumps, or in the open environment. These plastics have potential health effects on humans and animals, causing flooding, and the marine environments are negatively impacted,” he said.
He further explained that with the support of World Bank, EPA has developed a National Plastic and Plastic Wastes Management Policy that was approved by parliament in March.
He said that the Policy will be popularized nation-wide and shared with development partners and relevant stakeholders.
He emphasized that the policy focuses on five critical objectives which are: Plastic Pollution Elimination, Transition towards Circularity, Economic Development and Employment across the Plastic Value Chain, Strong enabling environment and sustainability, as well as financial sustainability for managing plastic wastes.
The Executive Chairman of EPA, Bondi Ngavao, said that the exercise is geared towards raising awareness on the dangers and negative implications of plastic pollution.
He said that Sierra Leoneans should ensure that they change their mindsets towards plastic disposal across the country.
Representative of the European Union, Holger ROMMEN, said that the issue of plastic pollution is a serious challenge that the world is faced with considering series of health and environmental challenges.
He added that the EU is committed to ensuring that plastic pollution is reduce if not eliminated across the world, and they will continue to support the Agency in plastic waste elimination.