UAE | Environment
Group calls on residents to join Can Collection Drive
UAE community 'should be held accountable for their actions'
- By Kevin Scott, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:11 May 6, 2008
- All seven emirates will participate in the 12th Can Collection Drive on Thursday, May 29. The Dubai event will be held simultaneously in Zabeel Park and at Ibn Battuta Mall.
- Image Credit:
Dubai: The Emirates Environment Group (EEG) is calling on UAE residents to join in this month's Can Collection Drive.
The Dubai based non-government organisation (NGO) is struggling to gain support for the initiative because 'people in the community are acting like spoilt children'.
Habiba Al Marashi, Chairperson of the EEG, told Gulf News yesterday that the recycling and waste management situation in the country had reached a crisis point.
She said: "I believe people in the community should be held accountable for their actions. The authorities should not have to shoulder all the responsibility; everybody has to do their bit in order to add value to the [can collection] campaign.
All seven emirates will participate in the 12th Can Collection Drive on Thursday, May 29. The Dubai event will be held simultaneously in Zabeel Park and at Ibn Battuta Mall.
NGOs in other GCC countries - including Bahrain, Qatar and Oman - are considering introducing similar initiatives.
Several schools, universities, companies and families participate in the UAE drive every year but finding new support is proving to be extremely difficult.
Al Marashi said: "We are living in a literate society but we need more awareness on environmental issues. For example, if hotels took an extra step it would make a huge difference to the overall picture.
"Every day EEG is running some sort of activity and we also place a strong incentive element into our programmes. However, we live in a community that has an indifferent attitude towards the environment and that is a negative feature of life in Dubai."
The EEG runs six separate clean-up campaigns - paper, plastic, cans, toner, glass and batteries - as part of its waste management and recycling programme.
Share this article
More from UAE Environment
More from UAE
Popular in UAE
-
Your pictures
Readers' pictures
A Selection of the best Gulf News reader pictures this week
Latest news
- Kuwaiti Emir invites Khalifa to Arab summit
- UAE Haj pilgrims safe and well: official
- Briton loses libel case against newspaper
- Masafi Village to get first sewage treatment plant
- Activities lined up for Eid holidays in Dubai parks
- Doctors urge residents to observe safety first
- Parking, Metro, telecom offers during holidays
- Malaysian woman jailed for forging cards
- Schools mark National Day with shows
- Database launched to help combat infectious diseases
- Munching on a health hazard
- National day celebrations held in Dubai
- Wise spenders shop way ahead of festivities
- Wag a tail
- SAT wiz: Top of the class
Community Reports
-
Munching on a health hazard
Residents must be careful about consuming snacks and sandwiches prepared along the roadside as they attract dirt and bacteria
-
Faded signage fails to guide visitors
Reader seeks better upkeep of signboards in green areas
-
Noise pollution must be regulated
Residents are finding it difficult to sleep well at night owing to ongoing construction work
-
Protect our children's health
Dust and dirt from a nearby road are causing problems to those frequenting Al Nasseriya park, Sharjah.
