CAIRO: Egypt produces forty to fifty thousand tons of municipal solid waste or MSW (a fancy word for trash) daily, with more than 20% coming from Cairo alone. We ultimately co-exist with this waste; storing it, getting rid of it, and even on occasion we see people burning it when they are cold. Garbage seems like a nuisance. Occasionally, someone sees garbage, their eyes turn to dollars signs and the rest is history. They see in this waste, a fortune, and like true entrepreneurs they step in and transform the waste to gold. To understand their point of view, let us examine the components of the so- called trash. On average, 50% of the municipal garbage consists of organic waste. This includes food, bones, and other organic types of waste. As organic waste is eventually biodegraded, people may think that it does not have a substantial impact on the environment. They would be mistaken, as anaerobic respiration by the bacteria living in this waste produces methane. Molecule-to-molecule, methane is eight times stronger a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Here, scrap millionaires step in with very ambitious ideas. Using this organic waste, they produce compost. When mixed with soil, compost benefits plants as it promotes plant growth, reduces plant disease (and the resultant use of pesticides), increases soil nutrients retention, and makes plants less susceptible to dehydration. Not only do the scrap millionaires make money by selling the compost, they can apply for and receive Emissions Reductions (ERs). An emission reduction (ER) is a financial instrument that can be used to transfer green house gas emissions reduction rights in the national and international marketplace to businesses and other entities that need them to “offset†(or create a “net†reduction of) their own emissions. In English, this means that the company can sell green-house-gas emission rights to other countries which ratified the Kyoto Protocol, for money! We find that papers and carton represent between 10% and 20% of the generated MSW in Egypt. Egypt consumes 370 thousand tons of paper pulp from trees to manufacture paper and paper-like products each month, and only 25 thousand tons of paper is recycled. According to experts, paper recycling could generate an estimated 600 million LE in annual revenues for recyclers. Plastics make up approximately 6% of the average garbage in Egypt, with an estimated annual waste production of 970 million tons. By recycling only 33% of the waste plastics, scrap millionaires generated 263 thousand jobs, making the plastics recycling industry a multi-billion pound industry. Whole neighborhoods have turned into scores of recycling workshops, transforming the plastic waste into valuable plastic commodity, and exporting 36 million dollars worth of this commodity annually. In conclusion, we see that the 21st century does not see garbage in its traditional sense, due to the scarcity of the non-renewable resources. Garbage seems like the answer (and the career) of many. The world’s non-renewable resources are running out at an alarming rate, and our consumption is increasing exponentially. The world as we know it is coming to an end, and we do not seem to understand the implications of our behavior. More and more trash is produced; trash that perhaps 20 years from now may be valuable, as non renewable resources become non-existent. If we do not do something about trash generation now, we would be forced to be doing something about this in the future. This future where plastics, gas, nylon, jet engines and cars would be seen in museums, and where electricity may be rationed and water recycled from toilets. Our current consumption is the catalyst to this process. So as eco-conscious individuals, what do we do? Developed countries strategies for the management of waste are summarized in the following list, starting at the highest priority and greatest focus and ending with the least favorable: 1. Waste Reduction 2. Reuse 3. Recycling and Composting 4. Incineration with Energy Recovery 5. Land-filling The most important thing to do starts at the individual level. Waste reduction means generating less waste, and reducing the consumer in all of us. Reuse comes at a close second, and the ideology of scrap millionaires comes third and fourth. Some tips for reducing the generated waste includes: * Buy in bulk to reduce packaging * Bring your own cotton shopping bags to the grocery store * Ask for paper shopping bags, then reuse, recycle or compost them * Don’t double bag your purchases * Reuse your plastic grocery bags * Use and re-use cloth napkins, towels and rags instead of paper napkins and paper towels * Buy serviceable or quality items and avoid single-use items * Don’t buy produce or baking goods in non-recyclable plastic containers (like clam-shell Styrofoam packages) * Use and re-use regular plates, cups and silverware instead of paper plates, cups, and plastic ware * Buy re-chargeable batteries, which are more readily recycled * Donate your old clothes and furniture to charities and missions to be resold * Have a garage sale so someone else can make use of your unwanted things * Use a travel mug or a thermos for your coffee – most coffee houses are glad to fill them for you * Take your household hazardous waste to a depot instead of dumping it with your garbage * Reconsider the necessity of your purchases – do you really need something new, or will your older one do? Reducing what you buy means thinking ahead and not buying on impulse * When buying paint, buy only what is required for the job * Before buying any hazardous waste chemical, check to see if there is an environmentally friendly alternative. Eco Options Egypt
