MINISTRY OF TOURISM PROMOTES RECYCLING AS PART OF ITS “PLASTIC FREE LEGACY” INITIATIVE

Basseterre, St. Kitts, February 08, 2019 (SKNIS): The Ministry of Tourism’s “Plastic Free July” initiative, which was launched in 2018, is continuing with a renewed campaign dubbed “Plastic Free Legacy” with the aim of substantially reducing the number of single use plastics in the Federation and thereby minimizing plastic pollution.

While speaking on the government’s weekly programme, “Working for You”, on February 06, Assistant Secretary and Chairperson of the Sustainable Destination Council, Diannille Taylor-Williams, encouraged persons to reduce the use of plastics in their everyday life through means such as recycling.

“We do not yet have a recycling facility in St. Kitts. What we have are persons, for example, Admirals, who collects recyclables and they compact and ship them. People are encouraged to take their recyclables, plastics, glass bottles, corrugated cardboard, and aluminium cans to Admirals for shipping,” she said. The Admirals company will collect recyclables from the community if contacted.

Because of the size of the St. Kitts and Nevis, it is not in a position to have a recycling facility as not enough waste is generated for such a small population, she said.

Additionally, she said that some persons look at recycling as a task that is not money making, as opposed to when they return glass bottles to the brewery.

“We are not at that position with plastics as yet where enough is being generated so that the person who is collecting it can give something. If we think of it in terms of our own health and environment, we would be willing to part with the plastic bottles. We are encouraging you to do it and not think about a cash return but the in-kind return. Isn’t your life worth more than cash?”, she said.

She pointed out that in Trinidad there is a facility that recycles plastics and makes them into tables and chairs for schools and said that the Ministry is promoting the plastic free challenge to encourage persons to get creative in recycling plastics.

Young persons can use recycling as an entrepreneurial venture and this can help to divert some of the waste from going down to the landfills, she proposed.

“If we continue to generate the amount of waste that we are currently generating we can have major problems in terms of the health of the people and also the economy,” Mrs. Taylor-Williams said.