Poster competition to kick off waste-awareness
Fire and smoke at the George Town dump (File photo)
(CNS): As the Cayman government inches its way towards the creation of a waste management strategy and a private sector partner to help implement it, the government is targeting the younger generation for its first awareness programme about more sustainable ways of managing waste. Before public consultation begins towards the end of this month on an early draft of the strategic policy and some possible solutions, school kids up to 16 years old are being asked to enter a competition.
Modern waste management solutions are the reverse of Cayman’s current mode of dealing with waste. Sustainable solutions start in the home, school and the workplace with the promotion of reducing waste in the first place and the reuse of things. The next step is for comprehensive recycling programmes, following the reclamation of old waste, and then finally the concept of disposal, which may mean a landfill or even waste-to-energy.
In an effort to educate local students and their parents and families, the Department of Environmental Health has launched a poster and essay contest encouraging young people to write about the importance of better waste-management or create posters depicting better solutions. The winning essays and posters will be judged by the DoE and winners will receive prizes, including a tablet from LIME and gift certificates. It is open to students in both the private and public sector schools from ages 6 to 16 and the winners will be announced during Earth Week in April.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, MLA Roy McTaggart, who is working with the premier as a councillor on the waste-management project, said government must win the hearts and minds of the community on the switch in attitudes towards waste. He said the poster and essay competition could be a family learning experience about how to reduce the amount of waste each household generates and learn how to reuse rather than dispose.
Winston Connolly, who is acting education minister as Tara Rivers is understood to be travelling overseas, said the government encouraged all students to take part and begin the discussion on how everyone can do their part. As the owner of a recycling business, he urged people to make use of the recycling programmes already in place because “a lot of things are riding” on the country’s ability in future to reduce and better manage its rubbish.
Category: Environmental Health, Health
why has no body ever set up a business that can collect old computers/electronic gadgets in general (for free) across the island and ship them back to china for a pretty penny ? To me sounds like a good business idea…. and if he/she can get a punch of tech savvy young lads they even fix back some of these gadgets here on island and sell off in Jamaica or hunduras for a nice penny ? why ? why ? or even send these to Jamaica and fix them for re-sell in Jamaica.
The recycle and reuse center on dump road has been processing computers for 7 years, as well as batteries, air conditioners, car parts, windows etc
We have shipped millions of pounds of materials from Cayman. Why don’t you know about us? We have sponsored radio, print, tv, T shirts as well as signs about saying we “buy scrap metal”.
Now that you are better informed please visit us on dump road at the first speed bump in the large warehouse it is well marked.
My poster has a map with a big arrow pointing to the Bodden Town dump site, with the slogan “Blame Alden and Ossie for the dump not being here”.
I think they have finally realized that they have no idea how to fix the dump issue. That’s more progress then the last 10 years.
Is this the best the government can do? A Billion of dollars unaccounted for and all the residents of this island can get is a poster competition?
We are well aware – we smell it every day!
Are the PPM aware though, or are they too busy smelling the roses?
Don’t look for the dump to be solved, in politics every country has a political football to kick around as long as they can . Let me draw you a picture the dump getting higher, people wearing face mask, people dropping dead . Don’t let it be moved to B T, because one developer will get the marl it needs to do a other development, and we get a other mountain of garbage to see and smell . Demand our money’s be spent wisely , because new garbage trucks are not solving the problems . One more thing who are the owner of the recycling place on the way near the dump, and do these new garbage trucks stop there to drop off .
The recycling & reuse center on dump road has Free Poster Paper available for your project.
Stop by to get your Free Poster Paper
Look for the “We Buy Scrap Metal” sign
Why not do this competition electronically?….. and save the landfill from Free Poster Paper. Most are wiz kids anyway……. Just saying.
The Free Poster Paper at the recycle and reuse center on dump road is actually recovered from a tipped sea contain and it could no longer be put into a printing press. It is wonderful for all kinds of other projects and didn’t go to the landfill
Please come get some for your classroom or other project we have almost 500,000 sheets