Caribbean Containers Incorporated (CCI) has widened its capacity to recycle corrugated cardboard with the commissioning of its new Tetra Pak recycling plant, but a shortage of such waste materials could see its capacity impeded.
Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment Robert Persaud and Bibi Webster, widow of former CCI CEO Ronald Webster, officially cut the ribbon yesterday to commission the new Tetra Pak processing component of the larger corrugated cardboard recycling plant at the CCI facility at Farm, East Bank Demarara.
Speaking at the ceremony was new Chief Executive Officer Patricia Bacchus, who spoke of the company’s drive towards environmentally-sustainable development. The recycling company can now accept thicker-multi-layered cardboard based materials like Topco juice boxes and milk cartons with the addition of the new component of its recycling plant.
This increases the already unsatisfied demand for old corrugated cardboard which has resulted in the company taking measures to close this gap.
Local suppliers can take this opportunity to rev up their supplies of old corrugated cardboard to CCI since it has now widened the acceptable sources of waste. Some 15 local suppliers already directly supply the company with such waste materials, with other large private sector companies contributing.
The Pine Hill, Nestle and Topco franchises have already started supplying their Tetra Pak waste to CCI.
With conversion of waste paper not enough to fulfil the company’s long-term development plan, CCI entered into a joint venture with Tetra Pak, which is hailed as the world’s leading manufacturers of food processing and packaging solutions. In an effort to optimise the use of the new recycling plant, CCI expects to be extract fibres from non-traditional sources, separate and apart from old corrugated cardboard. This will be facilitated by the Tetra Pak recycling plant which was fitted to do exactly that.
The fibre yielded from the recycled material will be fed into the main plant towards producing paperboard. A poly-aluminium component will also be derived, baled and stored separately and subsequently converted into byproducts.
In an extension of its private waste collection initiatives, the company is collaborating with private waste disposal companies to implement a cardboard separation system like that at Lusignan’s Landfill where a 20-ft container amasses cardboard waste from Puran Brothers. CCI has also placed cardboard receptacles at the Stabroek Market Square and plans on doing the same at places like Lethem, West Demerara and Berbice. It is also in talks with the Ministry of Local Govern-ment to set up collection points in Georgetown.
Persaud, after commending Bacchus on her company’s achievement, spoke of government’s commitment to achieving environmentally sustainable growth and mentioned the introduction of new legislation to manage solid waste.
“This bill will provide incentives to recycle waste and move the garbage problem from being a burden to being something of economic value,” Persaud said.
He went on to say that all of the waste around the city and elsewhere, including at the Haags Bosch landfill would not be enough to sustain a large-scale recycling operation and that Guyanese would find it strange that country would have to start importing waste.
