The Hindu 18.12.2009
RAAC launches ‘Donate your Waste’ programme
Special Correspondent
COIMBATORE: On the first anniversary of its “Wealth out of Waste” programme on Wednesday, the Residents’ Awareness Association of Coimbatore launched yet another scheme – “Donate your Waste” -- to prevent littering of roads and public places.
A disposal unit containing three bins will be provided to residents to segregate their dry waste. One bin is for newspapers and magazines, one for plastics and another for papers and cartons.
RAAC had begun a year ago the Wealth out of Waste project in association with ITC. Under this project, educational institutions, commercial and industrial establishments could store paper waste and plastic bags in separate bags and hand these over to the ITC for a price. In his special address at the inauguration, Commissioner of Customs, Central Excise and Service Tax C. Rajendiran said wisdom lay in finding a solution to poor waste management through waste segregation and waste reduction.
“RAAC is only asking you to donate waste and not money and this is only with a view to creating clean environs,” he said.
“People wonder why Singapore is such a clean city. It is because the country cut down waste generation from 7,700 tonnes a day in 2001 to 7,000 tonnes in 2005,” he said. Presiding over the launch, Unit Head of ITC C.A. Nair said the Waste-to-Wealth programme yielded 60 tonnes to 70 tonnes of paper waste a month. “It should increase to 2,000 tonnes a month; we have a long way to go,” he said.
