Dubai: Kuwait generates 51kg of trash per person every month, an average of 1.7kg per person per day, which is twice the global average, government statistics have revealed.
According to Al Qabas newspaper, the government is planning to implement a smart container system for waste collection in the new residential areas, in a move aimed at eliminating waste accumulation and raising the level of public hygiene in the country.
Adnan Sayed Mohsen, Director of the Environmental Affairs Department in the municipality, said Kuwait’s project sector supports the implementation of modern and sustainable systems for collecting household waste, including placing waste containers underground (smart containers), which are one of the modern technologies for solid waste management.
Each year more than 2 million tonnes of solid waste in generated in the Arab nation. High standards of living and rapid economic growth has been a major factor behind very high per capita waste generation of 1.7kg per day.
The prevalent solid waste disposal method in Kuwait is landfill burial. Despite being a small country, Kuwait has astonishingly high number of landfills. There are 18 landfills, of which 14 sites are closed and 4 sites are still in operation.
This comes at a time when Kuwait suffers from severe shortage of workers in restaurants, schools, hotels etc.
Last month, the Ministry of Education said it is facing a new crisis in hygiene and cleanliness, as financial controllers have refused to pay any dues to cleaning companies unless the latter pay the fines incurred by them, which caused a severe shortage of cleaners in schools.
