Over 100 residents of La in Accra over the weekend earned some money by collecting plastics through the Voltic Community Buyback projects.
Voltic Ghana Limited and partners including Coliba, University of Ghana Plastic Recycling Project and Green Alliance asked the residents to collect plastics, both sachets and bottles, for recycling purposes.
The programme is to encourage the recycling of plastic to ensure a clean environment in the community.
“I must say it is not acceptable that the plastic packages end up in the wrong places like the ocean and drainage tunnels. We must get together to save the environment for the health of our generation,” Managing Director of Voltic Ghana, Francois Gazania, expressed in an interview.
He educated the La Community on the need to protect the environment by segregating waste and recycling plastic materials.
The community buyback was initiated by Voltic together with its partners on 5th June at the Glefe Community near Dansoman and has since been held on the 3rd week of every month. The second buyback was held on 22nd June 2019 at Mandela Park, Osu.
The program is organised by Voltic in partnership with Coliba and with support from Cola-Cola, Total Petroleum, University of Ghana Plastic Recycling Project (UGPRP), Green Alliance, Cyclolyte and recently YALI Cohort 14-Ghana.
Volunteers drawn from the various partners move out in groups to educate the community while also picking up littered waste. The plastic waste collected by the volunteers, together with those already segregated by the community (because of the advance notice of the buyback), is bought by Coliba for recycling. After the event, Coliba goes in to buy from the community every fortnight.
A total of 4.2 tonnes of plastics have been collected and bought since the inception of the Community buyback.
The fortnight buybacks have also so far yielded in total of 0.5 tonnes of plastics.