Disposal of Waste Tires

Tens of millions of tires are discarded across the Middle East every year. Disposal of  waste tires is a challenging task because tires have a long life and are non-biodegradable. The traditional method of disposal of waste tires have been stockpiling or illegally dumping or landfilling, all of which are short-term solution. Menace of Waste Tires Stockpiled tires provide perfect breeding grounds for mosquitoes, vermin and snakes. Accidental fires caused in tire dumps can rage for months releasing toxic fumes. For example, a massive fire broke out at Jahra dumpsite in Kuwait in April 2012 where more than 5 million … Continue reading

الأكياس البلاستيكية – مشكلة العصر

الجميع ينشد التحضر ويعبر عن رغبته في توفير متطلبات العيش في بيئة نظيفة وصحية، لكن غالبية المكون الاجتماعي تسلك طريق مغاير لذلك الهدف البيئي والانساني، إذ يعمل الكثير من الافراد في تبني سلوك يتعارض مع ذلك المنهج والمعنى الحضاري، ومن المظاهر السلبية التي إستوقفتنا في هذا السياق والتي يعتبرها البعض ثقافة وحضارة، الاستخدام غير الرشيد للأكياس البلاستيكية، وبالاخص الخفيفة منها التي تجد طريقها الى الساحات العامة والشوارع والممرات وتأخذ في التطاير وتشويه المنظر الجمالي للقرية والمدينة، إذ نجدها معلقة بكثرة على أغصان الاشجار وإعلانات واجهات المتاجر والاسلاك على إختلاف أنواعها، ومتناثرة في الحدائق العامة وعلى شواطئ البحر وفي المياه البحرية … Continue reading

Solid Waste Management in Kuwait

With rapid economic growth, solid waste generation is increasing rapidly in Kuwait. Presently, Kuwait is facing serious challenges in solid waste management sector. which is grossly affecting the environmental, economic and social situation in the country in addition to precipitating climate change. The World Bank noted that Kuwait has a very high per capita waste generation of 1.55 kg per day, much higher than the global per capita average of 0.74 kg per day. The predominant solid waste disposal method in Kuwait is landfill burial which act as dumpsites without considering environmental and safety precautions. The land area of Kuwait is … Continue reading

Everything You Should Know About E-Waste Recycling Process

E-waste has been on a dramatic rise after the introduction of smartphones, tablets, headphones, virtual reality gear and other consumable electronic devices. With that in mind, e-waste recycling is now more important than ever before. What is e-waste recycling? E-waste is the process of recycling electronic products at or near the end of their “useful life.” These electronic products include computers, televisions, VCRs, stereos, copiers, fax machines, smartphones, tables and many more common Android and Apple electronic products. Many of these products can be reused, refurbished, or recycled. Moving forward, I believe that e-waste will also be needed for emerging … Continue reading

Waste Management Perspectives for Oman

Globalization and modernization have led to increased consumption among the Omani population. Reportedly, the average Omani household throws away one-third of the food it purchases. Conspicuous consumption fuelled by peer pressure and effective advertising brings more goods and products into the home than the family members can actually make use of. And along with the increase in merchandise comes a lot of extra packaging. Product packaging now accounts for the bulk of what is thrown into household rubbish bins. The urge to keep pace with what one’s neighbours, relatives and peers acquire means higher rates of consumption: a new mobile … Continue reading

Environmental Benefits of Tire Recycling

It is estimated that there are more than a billion passenger vehicles in the world. Imagine the number of tires that will be eventually disposed of. In the United States alone, an estimated 300 million tires are discarded every year. Where do you think those tires would end up? With the size, volume, and inherent durability of tires getting rid of them is no walk in the park. Fortunately, tire recycling has made substantial improvements in the past several years thanks to innovative technologies. The next time you are to replace your car tires, make it a point to recycle … Continue reading

The Menace of Plastic Water Bottles

It is common to see people greatly misuse plastic water bottles considering it free, taking a bottle, sipping it half and throwing it away. These used and partially consumed water bottles are then collected and thrown away in municipal garbage bins from where  it is collected and transported to landfills and waste dumps. These water bottles thus have a high carbon footprint and represent enormous wastage of precious water source and misuse of our other fragile resources. In many cases, these water bottles are being littered around the commercial and religious places. Plastic water bottles are a common feature in … Continue reading

السماد الحيوي

هو نوع من السماد الذي يحتوي على انواع معينه من ديدان الارض والتي تستخدم لتحسين تحويل الفضلات العضويه لانتاج مواد افضل . في وسط درجه حرارة معتدله هذة العلمية تجري باستخدام كائنات دقيقة و ديدان الارض . تتغذى ديدان الارض على الفضلات العضوية و تمر عبر النظام الهضمي لها و تنتج ما يشبه الشرنقه المطحونه و التي تعرف ب (السماد الحيوي ) ( vermicomposting ) ببساطه , السماد الحيوي هو فضلات الديدان , و يطلق عليها القالب ( الصب )casting  والتي تستطيع ان تحسن صفات التربه الفيزيائية و الكيميائية و البيولوجية , الافرازات الكيميائية للجهاز الهضمي لديدان الارض قادرة على … Continue reading

A Glance at Waste-Free Economy

Growth from trashing the planet was never a clever idea and linear economics has now reached the end of the line. The ‘more is better’ economy does not need to be stimulated to grow nor constrained from growing. It needs to be entirely replaced by ‘positive development’ in which markets work to automatically, systematically make things better both locally and globally. The folly of endless resources extraction, endlessly unmet human needs and endless waste dumping can end. Linear economics can be replaced by ‘circular economics’. Waste-Free Growth Model A switch towards waste-free economy would preserve and regenerate material value and … Continue reading

إدارة نفايات الإسبستوس في الشرق الاوسط

في كل عام تعمل دول منطقة الشرق الأوسط وشمال أفريقيا على إستيراد كميات كبيرة من الإسبستوس بهدف إستخدامها في قطاع الإنشاء. و بينما تُمثل منطقة الشرق الأوسط وأفريقيا معاً 20٪ من الطلب العالمي على مادة الإسبستوس بحسب آخر الإحصاءات فإن أكبر المستهلكين لمادة الإسبستوس في المنطقة هما دولتي إيران والإمارات العربية المتحدة. فى الواقع، واردات الأسبستوس في الشرق الأوسط بأكمله تزايدت بشكل مطرد بإستثناء مصر والمملكة العربية السعودية حيث أنهما الدولتان الوحيدتان اللاتي وضعت حظراً على الأسبستوس ولكن  بفعالية مشكوك فيها. وقد بلغت واردات إيران وحدها نحو 30،000 طن من الأسبستوس كل عام. و قد تم استيراد و إستهلاك أكثر … Continue reading

E-Waste Management: Perspectives from Egypt

As the person in charge of reducing my company’s environmental impact and maintaining our ISO 14K certification, I had to find a solution for the ever growing number of discarded mobile phones from our employees, partners and 30+ million customers! I explored almost every initiative related to e-waste management in Egypt. I participated in forums addressing the problem, attended meetings full of great ideas and intentions, met local and expat experts, participated in student competitions offering solutions and contacted overseas entities with great track record like Close The Gap, Umicore and Greencyc. Despite all of these resources, I couldn’t find … Continue reading

Islamic Principles on Waste Minimization

Since the beginning of time, waste has been an environmental issue for humans. Waste is often equated with trash, but even before the existence of trash, there was waste. Understanding the various forms of waste can help us identify ways to avoid and reduce it. Muslims have had lessons on avoiding and reducing waste for over 1,400 years and we can all benefit from the guidance offered in Islam through Quranic injuctions and Prophet’s Sunnah. The Holy Quran says: It is He Who has brought into being gardens, the cultivated and the wild, and date-palms, and fields with produce of all … Continue reading