Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi will divert its 80 per cent waste from landfills to its different recycling plants by 2030 and will treat its 100 per cent hazardous materials, a top official of Tadweer, the Centre of Waste Management in Abu Dhabi, said on Wednesday.
Currently, Abu Dhabi recycles only 30 per cent of its total 11 million tonnes of waste generated every year. The major components of waste are construction and demolition waste, and commercial and municipal waste.
Speaking at the Waste Management Solutions Forum of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, Saeed Al Mehairbi, acting general manager of Tadweer, said, “2030 is a deadline when the diversion rate of waste from landfills will reach 80 per cent, and the treatment of hazardous materials will reach 100 per cent.
“Approximately, we produced between 10 and 11 million tonnes of waste last year in the emirate and we aim to divert our maximum waste from landfills to recycling plants and reduce the per capita waste generation to 1.5 kilograms per day by 2021,” he said.
According to the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi’s 2016 annual report on waste and environment, the maximum municipal solid waste per capita was 1.71kg per day in 2013 and 1.51kg a day in 2014.
Currently, Abu Dhabi generates about 1.4 million tonnes of municipal solid waste per year, three million tonnes of commercial and industrial waste, four million tonnes of construction and demolition waste and 570,000 tonnes of green waste.
He said, “Abu Dhabi aims to reduce solid waste generation to deal with the increasing amount year by year, which causes a negative impact on the environment and on the public health.”
Waste to energy
The centre plans to build the first new waste-to-energy facility in Abu Dhabi.
The centre signed a contract with Green Energy Solutions and Sustainability for the first landfill gas to energy investment project in the Middle East at Al Dhafra Landfill, which is the largest landfill in Abu Dhabi.
It will start operation from September and it is expected to be commissioned to produce about five megawatts of power.
Al Mehairbi asserted that awareness among commercial and residential inhabitants is vital to cut waste generation because “it’s we who produce the waste every day”.
Waste to pencils
The centre also plans to introduce new machines for schools that convert waste into usable materials like stationery that pupils can use in their schools
Al Mehairbi said, “I have come across a small machine that converts waste into pencil and it is a great idea.
“We will introduce it in our schools so that we can turn the waste into reusable materials,” he said.
