It’s not fish they’re hunting on their cruise along one of the Dutch capital’s most famous tourist attractions — it’s plastic. With eco-tourism booming around the world, the canal cruises run by the Dutch group Plastic Whale are reeling in big business. “It’s a completely other way of visiting Amsterdam,” said Plastic Whale founder Marius Smit. “Obviously you’re on the … [Read more...]
South Africa’s 2019 recycling champions announced
On the back of a 6% year-on-year increase in the recycling of PET plastic bottles, SA's national industry body has unveiled its 2019 recycling champions. These people and organisations are making strides in sustainability at grassroots level. The annual awards were made across 11 categories, with Western Cape winners scooping nine awards, followed by Gauteng with two, and … [Read more...]
Diverting organic waste from landfills to produce green energy
The improper disposal of waste is one of the fastest growing risks to our planet and way of life. Rotting food leads to increases in methane gasses as the food decomposes in landfills. To address this, the City of Cape Town plans to start banning wet waste from its landfills from 2022. The Waste Transformers from the Netherlands and South Africa’s own JSE-listed … [Read more...]
Shopping without plastic bags?
South Africa does not have a law banning plastic bags. However, to reduce littering and discourage customers from buying them, the plastic bag levy was increased in April by 50 percent to 12 cents per bag. SA department store chain Woolworths Holdings will be removing single-use plastic bags from one of its stores during a six-month trial period in a bid to end plastic … [Read more...]
South Africans unite for a clean environment
Thousands of South Africans rolled up their sleeves, put on their rubber gloves and took to the beaches on Saturday, 15 September 2018 as part of the first World Clean-up Day - the largest peacetime civic action in human history. Stretching across 24 different time zones, involving 144 countries and more than 13 million volunteers worldwide, World Clean-up Day started in … [Read more...]
Wildlands praise recycling efforts in Colesberg
A group of nine hard-working residents in Colesberg (Northern Cape) signed up as Wildlands’ Waste-preneurs in 2016 with a goal of keeping their communities clean and green, while providing for their families. Continuous efforts made by this group have resulted in them forming a company known as A9. This allows them to be formally recognised as a business and draw more attention … [Read more...]
Rethinking the Bag with 5 Gyres Ambassador Hayley McLellan
In 2010 Hayley McLellan (now the Environmental Campaigner at the Two Oceans Aquarium) launched the Rethink the Bag campaign with the goal of banning single-use plastic shopping bags in South Africa - and she's making significant progress. In 2011, the Aquarium made the decision to fully support this campaign which led to staff and volunteers being prohibited from bringing … [Read more...]
Finally, Kenya effects ban on plastic bags
Susan Khalayi, a shopper in Nairobi walks out of a supermarket in the city’s central business district carrying foodstuff, mostly fruits. The goods are packed in an eco-friendly, reusable bag made of cloth. Just a day before, the groceries she bought at the same outlet were packed in plastic bags. That was the norm in Kenya until August 28, when the government effected a … [Read more...]
Coastal clean-up initiative sees record number of participants
This past weekend saw the 21st year in which South Africa participated in the International Coastal Clean-Up (ICC) – an annual event that has become the biggest, global volunteer effort for ocean health. “We coordinated more than 400 beach clean-up points around the Cape and 40 in KZN in partnership with the KZN Marine Waste Network members on Saturday alone. This excludes … [Read more...]
Fun runners clean Joburg, one plastic bottle at a time
A group of just over 180 proud residents took to the streets of Joburg on Sunday, 17 September 2017 as part of a ‘Joburg City Clean-Up’ in the prelude to the 2nd annual FNB Joburg 10K City Run. “We were overwhelmed by the support that the ‘Joburg City Clean-Up’ received today,” says Blake Dyason, ‘Joburg City Clean-Up’ pioneer. “Our cities have so much history and … [Read more...]
Let’s Do It! coastal clean-up initiative comes to Africa
Covering nearly 1,500 kilometres of the South African coastline, with a number of nodal clean-ups to be implemented from Melkbosstrand in the west, to Ballito on the east coast of South Africa, the inaugural ‘Big Clean-up’ – a network of participating organisations and volunteer groups – will deliver a wave of change to our shores this International Coastal Clean-up Day (ICC), … [Read more...]
Putting a new spin on waste: green is the new gold
South African non-profit association, the Institute of Waste Management of Southern Africa (IWMSA), aims to change perceptions and encourage more people to consider waste as a valuable resource. The institute’s Eastern Cape branch hosted its regional waste conference, titled ‘Green is the new Gold’ at the World of Windows in the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium last week. “Our … [Read more...]
Global plastics industry combats marine litter
Seven new signatories were added to The Declaration of the Global Plastics Associations for Solutions on Marine Litter, also informally known as the “Joint Declaration” in 2016. New participants include the American Fiber Manufacturers Association (AFMA), the Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers & Exporters Association (BPGMEA), the Flexible Packaging Association … [Read more...]
