Dubai: Over 70 villa residents across Dubai’s gated communities actually pay money to get their waste recycled.
For Dh100 a month, these residents subscribe to Green Truck, a newly launched private recycling service, which not only collects the waste from their doorsteps but also ensures it is responsibly recycled.
Dubai-based Jordanian expat Diya Khalil, who launched the service on May 1, said Green Truck picks up recyclable materials directly from households on a weekly basis and segregates them with waste management provider Enviroserve, following which each item is forwarded to UAE-based recycling factories to be used as raw materials for new production.
150-litre bin
“We provide subscribers with a special 150-litre bin where they discard paper, cans, plastic, glass, metal and electronics. Each area is given a designated time and day in the week when the Green Truck team visits each household to collect the waste,” said Khalil.
The areas covered include Emirates Living, Green Community, Dubai Motor City, Dubailand, Knowledge Village, Palm Jumeirah, Jumeirah Islands, Jumeirah Park, Jumeirah Village Triangle, among others. “We’re hoping to cover 500-700 villas by next year,” said Khalil.
He said when he first launched the idea at a supermarket in Dubai, the response was encouraging – despite resistance from one section of the public that had reservations about paying for a recycling service. “The response was initially varied as there were questions about the subscription fee, the genuineness of the service and so on. But many people signed up because they realised it is a private service with a cost to the logistics,” he claimed.
Regular subscribers agree.
Mary Stevens, a resident of Knowledge Village, said: “Previously, I had to take my recyclable waste all the way to a car park to discard them, but now I can do it at my own doorstep. I don’t mind paying Dh100 a month, which is just Dh25 a week, for the convenience,” said the expat from UK.
Regular timings
She said the Green Truck unfailingly visits her home on Sunday mornings and collects the recyclables. “I have recommended the service to many of my friends,” she added.
Others said the fee is nothing compared to the cause it serves. “This is a fantastic service and I certainly don’t mind paying for it,” said J. Morengo of the Springs.
Paula, another resident of Jumeirah Islands, said she had heard about the service and was going to subscribe to it as it was ‘very convenient’. “Otherwise, it can be quite a bother making the trip to designated recyclable bins in the city to dispose off paper, plastic or electronics,” she said.
