Georgetown: Aimed at enhancing Guyana’s garden city image and improving its solid waste management structure, the Ministry of Communities Monday outlined a comprehensive and economically viable, bio-friendly initiative that will serve as a blueprint for the implementation of best practices.
The Ministry of Communities launched the consultations for the National Integrated Solid Waste Management Strategy (NSWMS), at the Umana Yana, Kingston Georgetown.
The consultations saw in attendance Mayors, Deputy Mayors, Regional Chairmen, members the business community and sanitation service providers.
During opening remarks, Minister of Communities Ronald Bulkan said that the strategic framework will guide government’s agenda on waste collection, transportation and disposal; improving the waste management infrastructure, enforcing existing legislation and promoting waste- to- energy initiatives.
“The strategy is also expected to inform the country’s integrated efforts at converting waste material into useful resources by ensuring their full utilization and eventual exploitation for byproducts and value-added,” Minister Bulkan pointed out.
The objective is to reduce the long-term environmental, social and economic impact of a broken, archaic and disorganized system of solid waste management as the nation grapples with the re-socialization of a generation which thrived under a culture of littering and unlawful disposal of garbage that had plagued the country for a number of years.
Minister Bulkan stated that the purpose is also to ensure that Guyana’s natural resplendence and unspoiled beauty remains intact and consequently preserve and ensure the health and wellness of the nation’s most precious asset; its human resource.
Environmental Engineer attached to the Sanitation Management Unit of the Ministry of Communities, Satrohan Nauth explained that Guyanese must begin to think about ways to first prevent waste generation before minimizing and reusing it.
He mentioned the three pillars of waste management; reuse, recycle and recover will help in reducing the amount of waste that eventually ends up at landfill sites.
Nauth disclosed that the unit will be seeking to establish sanitary landfill facilities in all 10 regions of Guyana.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tagman Media Inc, Alex Graham pointed to the synergy between personal hygiene and public waste disposal practices.
Graham, who is the Communications Consultant for the ministry’s “Green Generation Guyana” public awareness campaign said that provisions must be made to ensure the reeducation of a society that is accustomed to improper garbage generation and disposal habits.
He noted that the awareness campaign will be especially geared towards children with the aim of producing a new cadre of Guyanese as a more modern and progressive way of addressing the issue of Solid Waste Management.
During his presentation, Environmental Consultant, Samuel Wright detailed that every human action creates a by-product and requires prior thought even before the waste is produced.
He related that the Solid Waste Management Strategy is a progressive one based the sustainable paradigm of a green economy.
Wright said that after a period of consultations in 25 communities in all 10 regions, the draft solid waste management strategy is expected to inform a final document which will support the enactment of the National Solid Waste Management Bill.
According to Wright, it is projected that by the year 2024, 40 percent of all generated waste will be recycled, composted or otherwise put to use.
Minister within the Ministry of Communities, Dawn Hastings-Williams during closing address said that many citizens are now fully cognizant of their role in contributing to a society that is clean, healthy and wholesome for human habitation.
“There are daily reminders about the state of our capital city just a few months ago. The piles of garbage that was left lying on the street and the way illegal dumping had become a way of life. No more can we afford to allow our citizens, their children and grandchildren to regress to a statusquo of wanton disregard for the environment,” Hastings-Williams said.
She expressed hope that this new approach to solid waste management will eventually place Guyana in a position where it can truly be known for its resplendent beauty and cleanliness.
According to the minister, the ministry is hoping not only to erase old habits but more especially to inculcate and encourage new ideas of waste management in a younger generation of Guyanese.
“We are therefore tasked with the responsibility of ensuring that the necessary legislative provisions and infrastructural mechanisms are in place so that the emphasis on cleanliness is no just a piece of document but an integral part of our emerging culture,” she said.
You must be logged in to post a comment.