Tag Archives: Recycling

Solid Waste Management in Jordan

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Jordan is an emerging and stable economy in the Middle East. The growing industrialization and high population growth rate has led to rapid increase in solid waste generation in the country which has, in turn, put increasing pressure in waste management infrastructure. Around 2 million tons of municipal waste is generated in Jordan each year with most of it diverted to unsanitary landfills and dumpsites. Improper solid waste disposal is leading to public health risks, adverse environmental impacts as well as socio-economic problems.  Solid Waste Generation The predominant fraction in Jordanian MSW is organic matter which makes up as much as … Continue reading →

Trash Talk from Doha

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On arriving a few years ago from a town in the UK that boasts a university course in waste management, and a very efficient weekly recyclable waste collection from our houses, I was a bit shocked, like many Europeans by how difficult it was to recycle in Doha. Having had the moral obligation to recycle drummed into me since I was quite young, I felt guilty throwing away all my waste into one bin, destined to fill up a huge smelly hole in the desert, where it would take a long time, if not forever to biodegrade. The Real Picture … Continue reading →

Eco-friendly Tyre Manufacturing for a Greener Tomorrow

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We all have a responsibility to reduce our impact on the environment. Fortunately, more of us are aware of those harmful everyday habits previous generations overlooked than ever today. For example, widespread coverage of plastic pollution has encouraged people to cut down on plastic consumption and take advantage of alternatives. And that’s a crucial aspect of building a greener global culture, considering eight million pieces of plastic enter oceans every single day, posing significant danger to marine life. One problematic product billions of people use every single day is the humble car tyre. It’s so easy to take them for … Continue reading →

The Menace of Plastic Water Bottles

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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 →

E-Waste Management: Perspectives from Egypt

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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 →

13 Ways to Minimize the Carbon Footprint of Your DIY Projects

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Most of us take up DIY projects as a hobby. However, did you know that you can take up DIY projects to reduce the carbon footprint of your home? DIY projects offer you the perfect opportunity to reuse things. You can create things yourself. You can use eco-friendly materials and resources to do so. When you take these steps, it will be easy for you to reduce the carbon footprint of your home. You have to change how you do things. When you plan and use such resources, it will be easy to reduce the carbon footprint of your DIY … Continue reading →

Carta: Creating Art-from-Trash in Jordan

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Carta, a novel paper recycling initiative in Jordan, was launched when Najwan Al Masri noticed the increasing amount of paper wastes being generated at her home (especially when her son started to write and draw) and she thought “Why not to upcycle waste papers into beautiful Art and Crafts”. The thought developed to an idea which then grew into a project with careful research and study about how to make something unique and useful. Carta is trying to give paper recycling a new dimension of creativity, innovation and passion. EcoMENA talks to Najwan Al Masri, the Founder of Carta, to know … Continue reading →

6 Easy Ideas to Teach Sustainable Living to Your Kids

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Talking about the environment with children is one of the best things we can do to encourage ‘green’ habits for a sustainable world. Developing the habit of thinking about the impact of their actions on the earth is as important as learning about other aspects of faith and growing spiritually – they are interlinked. To make sustainable living a way of life, we can make small daily changes. Here are a few ideas to teach sustainable living to your kids: 1. Getting serious about waste Consider the waste your household generates – what can you buy less of? Is there … Continue reading →

Top 3 Trends in Environmental Sustainability

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Environmental sustainability occupies an increasingly important position on the corporate agenda around the world. The major ingredients of environmental sustainability are elimination of waste and emissions, maximizing energy efficiency and productivity and minimizing practices that may adversely affect utilization of natural resources by coming generations. More and more companies are realizing the importance of environmental initiatives in business development and brand promotion. Decrease in energy and raw material usage combined with reduced emissions and waste generation can tackle a host of environmental challenges facing the world. Leading IT companies, like Microsoft, Adobe, Apple and Google, are investing in renewable sources of … Continue reading →

Waste Management Outlook for Qatar

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Qatar is counted among the world’s fastest growing economies as well as richest countries in the world. The rapid industrialization of the country and high population growth generates a lot of wastes in the form of municipal wastes, construction & demolition debris, industrial wastes etc. Annual solid waste generation in Qatar has crossed 2.5 million tons, which corresponds to daily waste generation of more than 7,000 tons per day. The country has one of the highest per capita waste generation worldwide which ranges from 1.6 to 1.8 kg per day. Solid Waste Management Scenario Solid waste is mainly comprised of organic … Continue reading →

Dealing with Polystyrene Wastes

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Polystyrene (also known as EPS Foam or Styrofoam) is a highly popular plastic packaging material which finds wide application in packaging of food items, electronic goods, electrical appliances, furniture etc due to its excellent insulating and protective properties. Polystyrene is also used to make useful products such as disposable cups, trays, cutlery, cartons, cases etc. Despite the attractiveness of polystyrene, municipalities and organisations are facing a growing problem in disposal of polystyrene packaging and products. Being large and bulky, polystyrene take up significant space in rubbish bins which means that bins becomes full more quickly and therefore needs to be emptied … Continue reading →

Paper Bag Boy’s Message to the World

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Abdul Muqeet, also known as the Paper Bag Boy, has risen from being just another ordinary student to an extra-ordinary environmentalist. Ten-year old Abdul Muqeet has demonstrated remarkable commitment to saving the environment in the United Arab Emirates and elsewhere, and has been a poster-boy for environmental campaigns in the Middle East. Here he shares his views on environment, recycling and public awareness. It is said that you should break your goals down into small steps which you can accomplish each day. Set a goal, and approach it in a simple and basic manner. When I started my environmental campaign couple of years … Continue reading →