By Olamilekan FAWAS
The Federal Ministry of Environment, Plateau Field Office, has urged the state government to urgently establish a waste recycling plant to curb plastic pollution in the state.
The Controller at the field office, Mr. Francis Ahmadu, made the call at an event in Jos on Tuesday to mark 2018 World Environment Day which had “Beat Plastic Pollution” as its theme.
Ahmadu said most water bodies in the state, particularly the Kwall Waterfall located in Miango in Bassa Local Government Area, were littered with waste which constituted mainly plastic waste.
He said: “Plastic waste is hazardous to both man and aquatic lives because it is non-biodegradable and can remain in the soil or water for as long as 500 years. Plastic materials emit toxins which contaminate the soil, pollute ground water and pollute the environment.
“If the state has a recycling plant, such waste can be properly sorted and recycled, which will not only create a healthier environment but will provide employment for youths and boost the state’s Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).
“Plastics make 10 per cent of all waste generated daily and there is an urgent need for such waste to be recycled as 80 per cent of the plastic waste is thermoplastic, which means they are recyclable.”
The controller added that if plastic waste pollution was not addressed urgently, particularly in the Jos-Bukuru metropolis, “it would constitute plastic waste epidemic.’’
A Guest Speaker at the event and Chairperson of Eagle Eye Climate Change, Mr. Timothy Waji, said for the state to beat plastic waste pollution, there was an urgent need for government to rethink the plastic process, by paying special attention to waste recycling.
He said waste recycling was an avenue for converting waste to wealth, and government needed to involve the informal sector. He noted that “government can involve cart pushers, who can go from house to house to collect waste daily, rather than waiting weekly as they can clear 70 per cent of the waste in the city at a minimal cost.
“The state government needs to have an official dump site, where waste sorters can sort and in turn the government generates revenue.”
The World Environment Day declared by UN since 1974 had been celebrated annually on June 5 to encourage worldwide awareness and action for the protection of the environment.
In Plateau, a debate competition was organised to mark the day between Federal Government College Jos and Government Science School Kuru, and the former emerged victorious.
