According to Republic of Armenia‘‘s Ministry of Urban Construction, every year over 700,000 tons of waste are generated in the country. Every day 450-470 ton of municipal waste are transported to the Nubarashen landfill. Association of Investigative Journalists (AIJ) in Armenia reports that no waste sorting or recycling occurs in …
Mais »USA – San Francisco mayor bans municipal purchase of plastic water bottles
San Francisco Mayor Newsom issues executive directive to permanently phase-out the purchase of bottled water by the city and county of San Francisco. Over the last decade, San Franciscans have responded to marketing campaigns to purchase bottled water and record amounts of bottled water have been purchased by San Francisco …
Mais »USA – San Francisco mayor pledges to reduce litter by 50% over five years
In terms of litter on the city‘‘s streets, chewing gum is public enemy number one. It accounts for an astonishing 39 percent of all small litter citywide. Of litter emblazoned with a brand name, the top repeat offender is packaging from McDonalds. These are just two of the findings in …
Mais »UK – revolutionary autoclaving treatment planned for Bradford‘s domestic waste
Yorwaste and Waddington Recycling Ltd have been named as preferred bidder to process Bradford‘‘s household waste. The news will result in a £20m investment in a state of the art recycling facility in the city. The Yorwaste and Waddington Recycling bid is based on the development of a revolutionary new …
Mais »Kenya – Government announces plan to ban thin plastics bags & tax heavier ones
In Kenya‘‘s 2007 national budget, the FInance Minister announced that partly to protect the environment from further degradation, he proposed to impose an excise duty of 120% on plastic bags. He further proposed to impose a ban on very thin plastic bags. These measures are expected to encourage industry players …
Mais »India – UK firm plans to set up integrated waste-to-energy plant in Punjab
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal given his in principal approval to a UK-based company to set up a Rs 3,000 crore Integrated Waste-to-energy plant in the state with a capacity to convert 1500 tonnes of waste per day into thermal energy and power. Newkerala.com reports that the approval came …
Mais »USA – California stemming tide of plastic bags
On July 1, California will become America‘‘s first state to initiate a mandatory recycling programme to cut down on its mounds of plastic bags. The Sacramento Bee reports that under legislation – Assembly Bill 2449 – and signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last year, supermarkets, pharmacies and other …
Mais »Malaysia – pay-as-you-throw legisation expected
People who waste more will have to pay more and every household will have to start separating recyclable items from other waste. These are two of the implications of the Solid Waste Management and Public Clean-Up Bill, which the Housing and Local Government Ministry expects to table in parliament in …
Mais »Japan – timber from thinned forests used for disposable chopsticks
Japan is a land endowed with a rich natural environment, with about 70 percent of its land covered by forest. Japanese planted forests are, however, in critical condition as a result of lack of necessary maintenance work in the country‘‘s extensive area of these forests, which require thinning at least …
Mais »Kenya – retailer Nakumatt to introduce re-usable carrier bags
An interesting transition from single use plastics to single use bioplastics, to reusable plastics in a couple of years, apparently impelled by an economic instrument. Kenya‘‘s biggest supermarket retailer, Nakumatt Holdings, is to launch a reusable carrier bag, following a Government move to levy 120 per cent excise duty on …
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