Two bodies to address sanitation challenges

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Universal Plastic Products Recycling (UPPR), a plastic waste management firm, have stated their preparedness to form a strong alliance in addressing the challenges confronting Ghana’s sanitation.

According to the two institutions, they would collaborate more and engage in regular activities, including public education on sanitation with emphasis on waste segregation.

Speaking at a conference of  waste collectors in Accra yesterday, the Chief Programme Officer of the EPA, Mr Godson Voado, and a senior officer of UPPR, Mr Lartey Benjamin, emphasised their commitment to deepen their partnership in combating sanitation issues in all the 10 regions of the country.

The conference

The conference, organised by UPPR, was aimed at training and equipping waste collectors in Accra with modern mechanisms of managing waste.

The participants were taken through the various phases of segregating waste at the collection point.

The event also created a platform for the waste collectors to share their challenges with officials from the EPA, UPPR and the Environmental Service Providers Association (ESPA).

It is estimated that for every tonne of solid waste collected in Ghana, there was more than 100 kilograms of plastic waste that could be recycled or utilised in one form or the other.

UPPR role

Explaining the operations of UPPR, Mr Lartey said the company used decentralised systems and state-of-the-art technology to recover recyclable plastics from the waste stream, while mobilising source recovery.

“Our strategic processes initially mobilise plastic materials from the highly complex waste products at source and point of disposal,” he said.

Mr Lartey said UPPR had installed laboratory equipment to undertake adequate analysis of “our feedstock and products to meet the required standards.”

EPA

On the role of EPA, Mr Voado said his outfit was ready to engage in regular activities with the waste management companies.

He said over the past years, EPA had worked with the waste management companies to improve on the sanitation situation in all the districts of Ghana.

“We intend to continue with this collaboration because we believe that without coming together, the country cannot properly address the waste problem,” Mr Voado said.