7 News Belize

Revolutionary Solution for Plastics in the Dump
posted (November 12, 2009)

Belize City has a garbage problem and the city councillor in charge of sanitation Phillip Willoughby says he has found a businessman who can help. Willoughby says the businessman, who shall remain nameless at this time, wants to buy anything that’s plastic for 5 cents a pound. Ground zero for the project is the Belize City dump. Councillor Willoughby explained the vision.

Phillip Willoughby,
“He’s looking at or requesting the accommodation to come, ask the guys from the back, the rear of the dump, to bag anything that is plastic. You may recall that Belize Recycling, Mr. Osborne, the first guy who came, he was looking at the peg 1. This othe initiative includes all other plastics and it is a work in progress.

We are looking at maybe five cents a pound. That would be equivalent to maybe ten or twelve bottles, crates, or anything like I mentioned that is plastic. The offset of this for the city I hope will be that we will receive bins or drums or containers for the residents of the city to put in their garbage and so forth as we lead towards separation rather than you have people just putting the garbage on the street, hanging it on fence, throwing it in an ad hoc manner versus having it in a strategic location within a container and that is what we are leaning towards.”

Keith Swift,
“What is he going to do with the plastic?”

Phillip Willoughby,
“Well one of two things. I am assuming that these things will have to be hammered out. Either it is for export or it will be for maybe an in house factory that will recycle the plastics here.”

The project should start within a week.

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