The Alliance to End Plastic Waste and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), launch the Aviral – Reducing Plastic Waste in the Ganga pilot project. This initiative aims to reduce the amount of plastic waste entering the environment in the northern Indian cities of Haridwar and Rishikesh.
In recent years, the amount of plastic waste has drastically increased in India. More specifically, this increase is affecting the two cities of Haridwar and Rishikesh. Renowned as important Hindu pilgrimage and cultural tourism destinations, in past years the boom in visitor numbers is increasingly leading to unmanageable amounts of plastic waste.
Aviral seeks to pilot an approach to address waste management challenges. In particular it will focus on strengthening an integrated plastic waste management system. Following the two-year pilot in the two cities, the partnership aims to scale this initiative across partnering cities in India.
“We want a world where every community can have universal access to an environment where their plastic waste is managed. This partnership marries the ambition of both the Alliance and GIZ where we reduce plastic waste and help improve the livelihoods of communities dependent on the Ganges, India’s lifeline and one of the world’s most important rivers.” said Jacob Duer, President and CEO of the Alliance to End Plastic Waste.
“With Aviral – Reducing Plastic Waste in the Ganga, we are building on the existing flagship programs of the National Mission for Clean Ganga (Namami Gange) and the Clean India Mission (Swachh Bharat Mission). As its own name indicates, Aviral, means “continuous” in Hindi, the overall objective is to continue strengthening our contribution to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals” added Carsten Schmitz-Hoffmann, Director General of GIZ International Services.
This privately financed project contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, notably focusing on clean water and sanitation, sustainable cities and communities, climate action and revitalizing the global partnership for sustainable development.
The Alliance to End Plastic Waste, in partnership with Project STOP and the Jembrana Regency, also commemorated the ground-breaking for a new waste processing facility in Bali. The facility is the regency’s first-ever solid waste management service that will benefit as many as 150,000 residents. It is a sustainable full waste management and recycling system that will also create new and permanent jobs for the community.
The facility will be equipped with sorting and waste processing systems, residue handling equipment, and other supporting facilities to manage and recycle both organic and non-organic waste from households and businesses. The facility is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2020. Since the start of July 2020, Jembrana residents have benefited from formal waste collection, many for the first time. Within two years, more than 150,000 people in the regency will have a formal waste collection service through this initiative in Jembrana.