From One Life to the Next

World Environment Day is this Sunday. According to Uganda’s National Environment Management Authority, Uganda struggles with poor solid waste management practices characterised by indiscriminate dumping and open burning of accumulated waste. So, this week’s Fist Bump goes to VectorLink Uganda for ensuring the most eco-friendly and safe solid waste management practices. During the 2022 spray campaign, the team collected and recycled a huge 126,237 water bottles, preventing them from being discarded into roadside waste dumps.

Wastes were separated by category at operational sites and were disposed of through incineration for hazardous wastes and landfilling and recycling for non-contaminated wastes. Plastics available for recycling comprise of damaged or worn-out buckets, jerrycans, and barrels made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), plastic sheeting composed of low-density polyethylene (LDPE), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) water bottles, used for midday hydration of spray teams during the spray campaign. Paper available for recycling was largely cardboard, used as secondary packaging for insecticide.

Empty PET water bottles were shredded and turned into raw material in the manufacturing process of new plastic bottles by Hema Beverages Limited, the manufacturer and distributer of potable water. HDPE and LDPE were recycled into corrugated culverts, drainage pipes and drippers for irrigation drip lines by Gentex Enterprises Limited. Paper wastes were recycled into products such as tissue paper and book covers by Uganda Pulp and Paper Limited. Transportation and recycling costs were absorbed by the partner waste facilities.

Besides environmental protection, this approach saved the project approximately $14,947 in 2022, $20,279 in 2021 and $24,247 in 2020. The decrease in savings is largely due to the rotation of insecticides that come in sachets vs. plastic bottles.

Well done, VL Uganda. It is great to see waste being handled in as responsible a manner as possible!