Reduce, Reuse and Recycle
Basseterre, St. Kitts – Nevis
March 18, 2010 (SKNIS)
Reduce, Reuse and Recycle is the focus of the “3 Rs Recycling Initiative” currently being undertaken by the Department of Environment.
The Initiative commenced its first phase on Tuesday, March 16 with the distribution of reusable shopping bags at designated supermarkets. This initial activity is actually “recycled” in the sense that this is not the first occasion that the Environment Department has undertaken such. Shoppers at Best Buy and Horsfords Valu Mart received bags today, while the supermarkets of B’Enterprises, Sandy Point; Rams ““ Bird Rock location, and C & C ““ Bay Road location will be distribution points on specific days, until Friday, March 26. Due to the limited numbers, only one bag per family will be given.
This reusable bag distribution was chosen as the first activity, considering that shopping bags have been determined to be the most difficult non-environmentally friendly products to manage. By project completion, it is the hope that more household users will use recyclable shopping bags at supermarkets and public markets. Additional activities to be undertaken under the Initiative include workshops to promote education, training and awareness on recycling initiatives; as well as the distribution of public education and awareness material. There will also be sessions to provide the best practices for waste management by means of exchange of experiences. The media will also be invited to assist in promoting the Three Rs principle.
A press release from the Department of Environment has noted that it is evident that as the local economy continues to expand, household consumption is increasing to levels that place tremendous stress on the solitary landfill. It said that in order to try and mitigate this problem, there is a need to place greater emphasis on reducing, reusing and recycling.
The Department of Environment commends Rams Supermarket for commencing its own recyclable bag activity and invites other shopping enterprises to partner in the initiative.