WASTE is any substance generated by human activity deemed unwanted or useless and discarded, including but not limited to food, yard and agricultural wastes.

Recently, solid waste disposal and management has become an increasingly challenging issue in Georgetown and its environs.

The Environmental Protection Agency, states that Georgetown with a population of approximately 350, 000, generates roughly 350 tons of waste daily. This waste principally originates from residential, commercial and industrial establishments.

Waste management is the collection, transport, processing, recycling or disposal, and monitoring of waste materials.

Management of residential and institutional waste in Guyana is usually the responsibility of local government authorities.

Land Filling, Recycling, Reusing and Incineration are the most feasible methods of management that can be used in Guyana.

Land filling in theory, is the compressing of waste and covering it with a layer of soil. A properly designed and well-managed landfill can be a hygienic and relatively inexpensive method of disposing of waste materials.

Older, poorly designed or poorly managed landfills can create a number of adverse environmental impacts such as: wind-blown litter, attraction of vermin, and generation of liquid leakage into the ground water.

Incineration is the reduction of waste through burning at a high temperature. This process reduces the volumes of solid waste to 20 to 30 percent of the original volume.

It can be carried out both on a small scale by individuals and on a large scale by industry, but in the 1990s the industrial incinerator was taken out of service due to the ruinous condition that it had fallen into.

Improper management results in numerous hazardous effects on man and his environment such as, pollution and stagnation of water bodies which not only is unsightly and unhealthy, but breeds mosquitoes and diseases such as typhoid and cholera.

An efficient waste management system in Guyana is unquestionably needed. The question, however, is: will such a system be of much impact if the population is not proactive and does not practise appropriate personal waste management?

Should citizens hold a responsibility in waste management or should it all fall to respective bodies such as the City Council?

Can the population contribute more to minimising the amount of refuse that is being generated daily? These questions were posed to the population in Georgetown.

Their adamant response was that the population definitely is not making its contribution to address the growing issue of waste management.

One citizen remarked, “80% of the various waste disposal issues are their (the population’s) fault”.  This is clearly illustrated almost everywhere. On any given Monday, the expanse of the Seawalls is practically covered with refuse and debris left there by the public.

Many people attribute the lack of public contribution to ignorance. One citizen stated that the public could do more but they do not know what they could do to contribute to the solution.

The citizen also said that before the population could be expected to participate they must first be motivated towards it, and made a suggestion of intensive public awareness campaigns.

Simple, small steps, population changes and adjustments can have a significant impact on waste management and disposal. The most common ways to reduce waste are, reuse and recycle.

An important method of waste management is waste reduction, which is the prevention of waste being created in the first place. Methods of reduction include, reusing of second-hand products; repairing broken items instead of buying new ones; encouraging consumers to avoid using disposable products such as disposable cutlery; minimising product packaging, and designing products that use less materials to achieve the same purpose.

An easy practice is reusing products and materials like plastic products, wrapping paper, newspapers, magazines and clothing.

Donate unwanted magazines, newspapers, books and clothing to the less fortunate.

Composting biodegradable or organic matter like vegetable peels, paper and teabags will greatly reduce the amount of unnecessary waste that is being landfilled. Compost is not only a highly feasible management method but it is also beneficial to the environment.

Avid gardeners would attest to the benefits of making and applying compost to their gardens. Plant matter can also be alternately used as supplementary animal feed.

Become vocal and ask for paper or reusable bags and paper or cardboard containers instead of plastic and Styrofoam.

Patronize fast food outlets that carry paper or cardboard containers.

Styrofoam will be sitting in a landfill for many years before it can decompose, and burning it releases harmful CFCs into the atmosphere, while paper takes only a few weeks to decompose.

Recycle paper and paper based products. Paper is recycled in Guyana at the Caribbean Container Limited (C.C.L). Recycling minimizes much wastage and saves trees from being cut down to make more paper.