Waste Management

khaleej times Tuesday, July 31, 2012

KHALEEJ TIMES / ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT

Waste disposal fee in focus

IMDAAD

Setting new benchmarks in waste management

Dubai Municipality is responding to the demand for effective waste management through an integrated approach using sustainable methods Staff Reporter

D

ubai is reviewing waste management fees in the emirate as part of its efforts to reach an ambitious goal of zero landfilling by 2030, officials said.

The Dubai Municipality has embarked on an integrated waste

management master plan for the next 20 years and the focus of the plan is to reduce the waste generated in the emirate and sent to its landfills, said Abdulmajeed Abdulaziz Al Saifaie, Director of Waste Management Department.

With just a miniscule of the total waste generated here getting recycled, the civic body aims to achieve a long-term target of recy-

Company takes the lead in providing sustainable solutions and recycling services besides launching awareness initiatives in the emirate cling the entire waste generated and dumping zero waste in landfills.

A revision of waste management fees is among the initiatives being planned to prevent waste generation and landfilling and encourage recycling, said Al Saifaie.

“We are reviewing all the fees related to waste management services. This will include entry fee at

the landfills (tipping fee) and the municipal fee for waste management services levied from companies when they make or renew trade licenses,” he told Khaleej Times.

However, he did not clarify if Dubai will start charging private companies a flat rate for the waste they generate, like the one implemented by Abu Dhabi last year.

Eco-conscious industrial free zone Rashid Al Leem, Director General, Sharjah Department of Seaports & Customs and Hamriyah Free Zone Authority, shares his thoughts on waste management ENVIRONMENTAL Protection is a buzzword today and greater emphasis is laid on being greener and economically friendly, waste management has become a very important topic. Waste Management is a complex process involving various stages like collecting waste material and processing it in some way, or trying to recycle it. People and industries nowadays realise the need to have efficient means and ways of the things they use, and the way they dispose them of as improper waste management can have health, safety and environmental implications or impacts.

Hamriyah Free Zone (HFZ) be-

ing an eco-conscious industrial free zone focuses on efficient waste management practices across the industries in HFZ. Industries are encouraged to collect, segregate, transport and dispose the domestic, industrial and hazardous waste.

Administrative procedures are in place wherein industrial facilities are facilitated in obtaining necessary waste disposal permit, the aforesaid wastes are transported and disposed ensuring the waste generators dispose the waste in line with the legal requirements and are periodically monitored by the environmental protection department.

HFZA has successfully implemented the domestic wastes segregation from our office buildings in association with Beeah — The Sharjah Environment Co. Our employees are very much motivated to segregate the office wastes by applying ‘3R’ principles (Reduce, Re-use, Recycle) through tailor-

Rashid Al Leem

made concept-bins to facilitate this. We also strongly encourage recycling technology based investor community to set-up their industrial facility in Hamriyah Free Zone.

Hamriyah She-Q Club and Hamriyah Green Team are our non-formal, not-for-profit forums through which HFZ constantly creates awareness, motivates, encourages

the industrial communities by sharing our best practices on various areas of safety, health, environment and quality as part of shared learning. Future waste management strategies is to develop an integrated waste management plan for HFZ, community recycling in HFZ labour camps etc. which will definitely be a value addition for our efforts to become a sustainable free zone.

As we enter the third quarter of the current year, I am proud to announce the registration of 824 new investors from 80 countries. With 5,700 companies from across 140 countries now operating out of Hamriyah, I believe, the measure of our success lies not in the numbers but in being hands-on with the emerging social concerns and priorities of both our internal and external stakeholders, and making a significant, visible difference to the HFZA community.

IMDAAD, a leading provider of integrated facilities management is specialised in providing sustainable solutions that complement the green building policies and environmental regulations that are being increasingly introduced in the region and worldwide. The company uses environmentfriendly equipment and sustainable business practices and techniques to address the facilities management needs of clients, giving them complete freedom to operate in a safe, secure and clean work environment. Studies have shown that integrated FM solutions have an immediate and direct impact on the environment and the sustainable growth of any business enterprise, creating significant savings in terms of reduction of energy usage, improved waste management and reduced total lifecycle costs of facilities.

Waste management has been a core expertise of Imdaad as the company commits itself to deliver tangible solutions to address the growing volumes of waste being produced in the UAE and across the GCC. Imdaad provides solid waste management, liquid waste management, infrastructure cleaning and recycling services to various corporate clients and integrated communities such as JAFZA, Palm Jumeirah, Burj Khalifa, Al Reef Villas, Emaar vertical community, and Jumeirah Beach Residence, among others.

Recycling is one of the pillars of Imdaad’s waste management

Jamal Abdulla Lootah

strategy in conjunction with government-led recycling programmes. Moreover, Imdaad understands that community involvement is essential for waste management and recycling programmes to succeed and become truly sustainable. Imdaad has therefore initiated and supported environmental campaigns such as the ‘My City, My Environment’ of Dubai Municipality, wherein Imdaad offers its resources and expertise to collect general waste daily and recyclables in selected communities in Dubai, while conducting door-to-door campaigns to increase awareness about the importance of recycling and waste management.

Imdaad has not only shown its commitment to establish itself as a leading FM company through its strong focus on quality and its ability to provide a comprehensive range of integrated services, but has also demonstrated a genuine commitment to being a socially responsible corporate entity. The Be’ati initiative as a printed newsletter, for instance, has been launched by Imdaad as a part of the CSR programme that aims to educate school children on the importance of recycling and environment protection.

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Tuesday, July 31, 2012 khaleej times

KHALEEJ TIMES / ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT

ZENATH GROUP OF COMPANIES

Reducing, recycling and reusing waste The company has commissioned first-ofits-kind incinerator for medical waste in Dubai, which employs the world’s latest vertical incineration technology to decompose medical waste ZENATH Group of Companies is a subsidiary of ETA-Star Group, a diversified group based in the UAE. Zenath Recycling and Waste Management is one of the largest waste haulage companies in Dubai. The division offers a wide range of waste management services and is engaged in the haulage of the following from industrial houses, companies, construction sites, shopping malls, hotels, schools, residential complexes.

• General non-hazardous wastes • Construction wastes • Industrial wastes • Hazardous wastes • Medical wastes (from hospitals and clinics) The consortium Zenath, Mitsubishi Corporation and Plantec Inc. Japan has successfully constructed and commissioned the first-of-its-kind incinerator for medical waste at Jabel Ali, Dubai.

Goklendra Vyas

Mahmood Sait

The incinerator employs the world’s latest vertical incineration technology with the best emission norms to decompose medical waste through thermal incineration. It has a capacity of incinerating medical waste of 19.2 tonnes per day (24 hours).

Explains Mahmood Sait, Assis-

GE

Pay heed to the environment

Addressing water scarcity GE has been championing the need for reverse osmosis and electro-deionisation technologies

JSA Bukhari, Executive Director, Zenath, speaks about the importance of waste management and also the need to create awareness about the subject

JSA Bukhari

The GCC is among the top 10 waste producing nations in the world because of its large expatriate population and perennial visitors, who heavily contribute to the output of enormous garbage in these countries. Besides this, a large number of developmental activities are still taking place — demanding the presence of millions of expatriates and visit of foreigners thereby increasing the output of garbage in this region. The challenges that we foresee are: Proper waste management like collection, transportation and disposal in a proper manner, reduction, recycle and reuse of garbage.

There should be technologies for recycling and end-users for recycled materials to convert them into by-products again.

Waste management is not government’s responsibility alone.

More than the government, it is the responsibility of an individual, a company and an institution. As a private operator, we are not only into collection and disposal of waste but also introduce new technologies for waste management. We have commissioned an incinerator plant for medical waste at Dubai Municipality’s dump yard, which has won awards for its design and efficiency as it has got the best emission norms for toxic gases. In the subcontinent, many people make a livelihood out of recyclables collected from garbage. There are plenty of rag pickers who collect paper, carton, plastic, aluminium cans and sell them to shops to make a living. But it cannot be done here because of the economic condition and stringent government rules preventing such activities.

tant General Manager, Zenath Group: “The critical aspect of any waste management programme is public awareness and participation. The various stakeholders in the process need to work together to achieve the objectives. The government, the operator, the developer and the recycling company should all be working towards a common goal.” He feels that Canada and Japan are at the forefront of this field and there are many lessons for the rest of the world to learn from them. The Japanese have mastered the art of turning waste to energy, and Sait believes this is where the future of waste management lies.

While the rest of the Zenath Group is poised to bring in new technology to the region and beyond, the paper recycling division has long been a pioneer in its field.

G Vyas, Deputy General Manager of Zenath Paper Traders has been

WASTEMANAGEMENT

associated with the group for over 22 years. Like Sait, he too believes that creating awareness is the biggest step forward in a successful waste management programme.

“We arrange visits from schools and colleges to our paper recycling plant. It is important to create awareness among children at an early age,” he says.

Zenath recycling and waste management lays great emphasis on safeguarding the environment and creating awareness among the people about the necessity to take care of the environment for the welfare of humanity. The division is one of the main sponsors of environmental awareness campaigns by Dubai municipality and Emirates environmental group (EEG) like clean up the world and clean up UAE campaign, organised with a motto to inculcate reduce, recycle and reuse concepts.

Nabil Habayeb LET the truth be told: There never can be enough water for every man’s need on planet Earth.

We are talking of a natural resource that, for all practical purposes, covers some 71 per cent of the earth’s surface although most of it is sea water. Only 2.5 per cent of our planet’s water bodies are fresh water sources.

The scarcity of water resources is compounded in the Middle East and North Africa region with its climate and terrain. Yet, this region, with nearly 5 per cent of the world’s total population, witnesses arguably one of the largest growth rates in water demand.

A report by UK-based corporate risk intelligence firm, Maple Croft points out that the MENA economies perform poorly in an index that rates the supply of fresh water to societies and businesses. The GCC nations have been ranked as ‘high risk’ by the index.

A UN report reiterates the situation: By 2025 some 30 nations across the world would fit the description of being ‘water scarce’ of which 18 will be in the MENA region. Water scarcity threatens not just the immediate requirement of drinking water. It has a direct bearing on food security — with agriculture in the MENA region leading in water consumption — as well as impacting the manufacturing sector, sanitation and healthcare, and the overall social security.

Managing water supply efficiently is not an option anymore. It is imperative, and only concerted efforts that involve the public sector, private enterprises and the public at large can attain tangible results.

According to estimates some 85 per cent of the water in the MENA region goes for irrigation — underlining the importance of exploring cost-competitive water reuse options. With very little realistic pos-

Nabil Habayeb

sibility of new freshwater sources being added, the practical option before policy makers is to invest in desalination, waste water treatment and recycling.

Governments are making significant investments in addressing water scarcity. Saudi Arabia plans to double its desalinated water output to 2.07 billion cubic metres annually by 2015, while the UAE spends billions of dirhams annually in driving its desalinated water supply which is projected to be around 14 per cent of the world’s total desalinated water output.

GE, through its Water Centre of Excellence in Jebel Ali Free Zone, supports treatment of some 90 million litres of water every day, and nearly 800 million litres per day across the company’s customers in the MENA region. In all, GE technologies have been used to supply more than 1.45 trillion litres of water across the region.

However, with demand for water growing exponentially, the urgent need is to focus on enhancing water use efficiency.

Taking into consideration the growing demand for energy and the interplays between the power and water sector, GE has been championing the need for reverse osmosis and electro-de-ionisation technologies in the desalination process which are less complex, leads to lesser carbon footprint and are more energy efficient.

A key thrust area should be on localised innovation. GE’s centre of excellence emphasises on training its local partners on advanced water technologies and in jointly exploring cost-effective solutions.

A tangible change in addressing water shortage can come only with three key integrated aspects: Enhancing water use efficiency, promoting water reuse and driving on-ground innovation.

Upholding these is critical to drive regional social and economic stability.

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khaleej times Tuesday, July 31, 2012

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