LOCAL company Caribbean Containers Inc. (CCI) has said that it is embarking on new initiatives to expand its purchasing of cardboard waste for recycling, moreso in the context of current solid waste disposal and management problems affecting communities.

The CCI, located at Farm, East Bank Demerara, recycles  old corrugated cartons (OCC) often discarded as waste to make  bio-degradable boxes and packages for a multiplicity  of purposes,  including commercial packaging, fresh food and fast food boxes, seafood  and office packages.
The cardboard waste is responsible for producing 80% of the paper utilised in the making of corrugated packaging in the CCI box plant facility.
The company sells these environmentally friendly products across Guyana and the Caribbean.
Ms. Patricia Bacchus of CCI said that recycling is a key component of modern waste reduction.
She said that the CCI, formerly known as SAPIL, collects approximately 100 tonnes of cardboard waste and bond paper which is white ledger paper or office paper.
“Because we are not getting enough supplies locally, we have had to resort to importing solid waste from other countries. We import waste from Trinidad and Suriname and we actually pay a lot of money for this,” she said.
She said that  based on trade information on items coming into the country, that is packaged using corrugated boxes,  the company feels that it is  collecting only  about a quarter to a third of what is actually available for recycling.
She pointed out that Guyana does not have a plan which compels business people and households to sort out garbage in order to make it easier to retrieve recyclable materials.
This, she said, is impairing the ability of the company to acquire more needed cardboard waste.
She said that the CCI has the capacity to recycle an additional 12,000 tonnes per year and added that if the system of sorting is established, possibly by law, the company can look to 75% of its requirements being satisfied locally; with a very small supplement from Trinidad or Suriname.
She said that, that would lower the company’s cost of production drastically and the company will then be able to pay more for cardboard waste for the benefit of generators of such waste and the environment.
She disclosed that the current purchasing  arrangement is that  CCI gets  supplies from locals who would pick up OCCs from around the commercial areas around Georgetown and also from  companies which generate large quantities of OCCs; for example Banks DIH; Demerara Distilleries Limited (DDL) and the  New Guyana Pharmaceutical Corporation (New GPC).
She said that in  terms of  encouraging an increase in supplies in 2014, CCI wants to set up collection centres  in  Georgetown, Linden ,Parika,  New Amsterdam and Skeldon  and other outlying areas where  there is a great deal of commercial activity in order to make it easier for persons to support recycling..
She said that the CCI has applied to the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development for small plots of land in targeted outlying areas that can accommodate a container which  would make it easier for  businessmen, residents and otherwise unemployed persons to sell their cardboard waste.
“We want to get going but we would first need the lands to be identified and allocated and so we are waiting for the responses from government agencies, to whom we have submitted these proposals,” she said.
She said that the CCI has also  submitted proposals to the City Council to help it  retrieve cardboard waste and paper waste from the market places and so help to acquire supplies, help people to make some cash and  reduce the pressure on the landfill all at the same time.

(By Clifford Stanley)