The Food and Beverage Recycling Alliance (FBRA) recently partnered Trashusers, a plastic waste collection organisation, and Lagos State government to rid Agege community of plastic wastes as part of its commitment to environmental preservation during this year’s World Clean-up Day.
The clean-up exercise, focused on cleaning drainages, streets and the major canal in Agege, was held last Saturday, this year’s World Clean-up Day. It resonates FBRA’s resolve in intensifying awareness on waste separation for recycling and measures of curbing environ- mental pollution caused by food and beverage packaging waste. The exercise was embarked upon by volunteered staff of member-companies of the Alliance, which is the producer responsibility organisation for the food and beverage sector, in line with the Extended Producer Re- sponsibility. Other partners include: Trashusers, a pri- vate plastic waste collection organisation, the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps (LASESC), the Community Development Association (CDA), Olusanya, Oke koto, Agege, members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and volunteers.
Commenting on the clean-up initiative, the Technical Lead, FBRA, Nwamaka Onyemelukwe, said the initiative was aimed at reinforcing the consciousness on responsible waste management to Nigerians that the environment should be free from waste pollution, especially those from food and beverage packaging, which hardly degrade.
She said the Alliance has been at the forefront of its advocacy role of educating the populace on proper waste disposal and the need for a clean environment through waste separation, proper disposal and recycling, which can also enhance job and wealth creation along the value chain.
According to her, the Agege clean-up initiative would reawaken the consciousness among inhabit- ants of the community that their environment, where they live and work, is paramount to their wellbeing and should be preserved for healthy living.
Onyemelukwe, who is also the Head, Public Affairs and Communications of Coca- Cola Nigeria Limited, ex- plained that “if proper waste management is adopted, diseases and flooding that come with indiscriminate waste disposal will be eliminated,” thereby promoting a healthy lifestyle.