Madam Sophia Ama Otabir, the Tarkwa Regional Director of Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), has urged the youth to transform plastics into valuable products that would benefit society.
She said more creative solutions from the youth would help curb plastic pollution and its harmful effects on the environment.
Madam Otabir made the remarks during the World Environment Day in Huni-Valley, organised by the Abosso Goldfields Limited (AGL) and the EPA’s Tarkwa Regional office.
“Last week, l came across a person who has been using plastics to create desks, and it’s a great example of innovation”
“We face challenges supplying desks to schools, but using them is a good option since they don’t decompose easily”, she stated
. Explaining more on the World Environment Day, she said it’s a global event, and EPA was celebrating it under the national theme: “Reuse, Rethink, Plastics”.
Madam Otabir, also said, “at the Tarkwa Regional office, we are emphasizing that to end plastic pollution, we must stop it entirely”.
“So, our slogan is” mempe rubber “or “l don’t want rubber” because single-use plastics pose a lot of problems in our homes and workplaces”.
Mr Frank Denkyi Agyei, Acting Operations Manager, AGL, recalled that in Ghana, approximately one million tonnes of plastic waste were generated each year, but only 5 per cent was recycled.
He said plastics clogged drains, caused floods, and contaminated water bodies, adding, “microplastics have entered our food, water, and air, while hazardous additives in many plastics pose serious health risk”.
According to him, “in our local mining communities, we see the consequences of unmanaged plastic waste, from discarded water sachets and food wraps to single-use packaging, plastic has infiltrated our environment”
“As a lead player in Ghana’s mining industry, we are not standing aloof, but we are acting strategically, systematically, and sustainably to beat plastic pollution within our sphere of influence”. Mr Agyei revealed
He announced that the Mine had implemented a sight-wide policy aimed at significantly reducing single-use plastics, stressing, “we have color-coded bins across our mine site including residential areas to promote effective segregation of plastic waste from other waste”.
Mr Agyei said by partnering with local recycling firms, they ensure that plastics collected at their sites were repurposed instead of being sent to landfill or ending up in water bodies.
He emphasized that their supply chain team now prioritizes vendors who used eco-friendly packaging and would continue to explore the use of alternative materials to plastic in their packaging and logistics operations.
Beyond the boundaries of their operations, Gold Fields has launched awareness campaigns in its surrounding communities to educate residents about the dangers of plastic pollution and to promote local innovations such as reusable shopping bags, Mr Agyei mentioned.
Mr Desmond Asare, Acting Unit Manager Environmental Department, pointed out that over the past five years, AGL had diverted approximately 871 tonnes of recyclable plastic from landfill by ensuring proper segregation and collection of plastic waste, which was then transferred to authorized recycling facilities.
Through these initiatives, jobs were created while, money generated from the sale went to the Gold Fields Ghana Foundation for community development, he indicated.
Mr Asare said, this achievement had contributed to their greenhouse gas emission reduction goals, landfill diversion targets, and alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) 12, 13 and 14.
The Mine donated four plastic waste containers to two basic schools in Huni Valley.