1 comment.Gozo joins in with European Week for Waste Reduction
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This week, Gozo is for the first time is joining in with the rest of Europe, in increasing the awareness and commitment, through activities associated with the European Week for Waste Reduction. Through this initiative the European Commission aims to address the challenge related to waste reduction in the European Union member countries.
The Ministry for Gozo, through the Eco-Gozo Department and Regional Development, said that it has introduced the use of compost bins in all the schools around Gozo. It aimed to promote useful practices for processing organic waste, composting it, and then using it in the schools. This activity will eventually lead to reduced waste disposal in landfills. This is also an initiative to promote good environmental practices associated with the proposals contained in the Plan of Action 2010-2012 of the eco-Gozo vision.
These compost bins were introduced during an activity held in Qala Primary School and attended by among others the Minister for Gozo, Giovanna Debono. The Minister urged students and teachers to start using these bins at school, as well as also promoting what they learn to peole around them, such as family and friends, which will help to encourage everyone to become more responsible in waste management. The Minister went on to explain how the educational field is a valid area to introduce new ideas and practices that will be instrumental to realise the eco-Gozo vision.
The Minister for Gozo also explained how, what would seem like a small gesture can help reduce the amount of waste generated daily in schools. Some suggestions could include the use of lunchboxes instead of plastic bags, cloth napkins instead of paper napkins, cups or reusable cups instead of disposable ones, as well as making photocopies on both sides of sheets of paper which will cut down the amount of paper used.
Another initiative related to the plan of the eco-Gozo action that will be launched in Gozo schools in time for Christmas, is one that deals with the construction of recycled material cribs. The students were urged by the Minister to participate in this initiative, to be creative and make up different cribs, their works will then be exhibited in the Exhibition Hall of the Ministry for Gozo and the Valletta Waterfront.
So far during this year in Gozo, WasteServ has processed 740,000 kilograms of separated waste, an increase of more than 440,000 kilograms on that collected in 2009.
This woman really is unbelievable! I’m not knocking the idea of compost bins in schools. It’s a good idea to get kids thinking along these lines at an early age. However the message is being delivered by a woman, supposedly Minister for Gozo, who had no idea that Dwejra was being used as a landfill site by a film company until she read about it in the Sunday papers whilst having breakfast.
She also appears to have been oblivious to the fact that land in Qala where she was today was being used as an illegal dumping ground for years until the matter was pointed out by an LP parliamentarian Dr. Justyne Caruana. These are the real waste issues that your office should have been dealing with Giovanna although I guess it must be hard to keep up with everything that is happening on such a big island!