Anambra State Waste Management Authority (ASWAMA), in collaboration with some agencies in the environment-related field, recently engaged in picking up plastic waste bottles from various parts of the state.
The Nigerian Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP), National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) together with ASWAMA picked up 650,000 plastic bottles from across the state in order to commemorate the 2020 World Cleanup Day.
The tripartite team also enlisted the help of some volunteer organisations to carry out the task.
World Cleanup Day is an annual global social action programme aimed at combating the global solid waste problem.
The event marked globally on Sept. 19, is observed in Anambra every September the 26th.
Managing Director, ASWAMA, Mr Amechi Akorah, while speaking at the event in Awka, said that the 650,000 plastic waste bottles were removed from drainage channels, the streets and canals across the state.
He explained that the programme was a mock exercise in preparation for the main event which is to hold in November.
He advised that plastic wastes should not be disposed of indiscriminately rather should be handed over for recycling in order to protect the environment from plastic pollution.
Speaking further, he said that we want our people to understand that plastic bottle wastes are treasures and not really wastes and should not be disposed of indiscriminately.
He concluded by calling on Ndi Anambra to learn to handle plastic wastes better by desisting from flinging them Off runing vehicles as they block drainages, cause havoc and constitute health hazards accross the state.
State Commissioner, Nigerian Girl Guides Association, Anambra State, Dr Helen Obi said that plastic wastes constituted nuisance to the society.
Dr Obi said that they joined the programme in the quest for a sustainable clean, healthy and pollution- free environment.
She posited that some of these plastic bottles end up in the rivers and the seas and sometimes enter the engine of a ship and cause ship wreck.
She then noted that they have been in partnership with ASWAMA on this project to ensure that they got rid of plastic wastes in the environment.
A lecturer at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Dr Nelson Omenugha stressed the need for youths to acknowledge the importance of protecting the environment.
Dr Omenugha said that most of the plastic bottle wastes were used by youths, and pleaded that plastic wastes should be managed properly in order to achieve a clean and healthy environment.
0
0
