First lady’s Zero-Waste Project completes 5 years

ISTANBUL

Zero-Waste Project, being carried out by the Turkish first lady Emine Erdoğan in a bid to reduce the volume of non-recyclable waste, has completed its five years.

With the project, which also aims to use resources more efficiently, a transition to a zero-waste management system has been achieved in 154,000 buildings and campuses so far, while plans were prepared for the implementation of the system in the country’s all 81 provinces.

A total of 18 million people were trained to “turn zero-waste into a lifestyle.” The topics of environment, zero-waste and climate change were included in the curriculums.

With the project, which became a state policy after a while, 112,000 buildings and campuses that installed these systems were given a “Basic Level Zero-Waste Certificate” by the Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Ministry since Jan. 12, 2020.

Since 2017, when the project was launched, 20.4 million tons of paper and cardboard, 5.4 million tons of plastic, 2.3 million tons of glass and 500,000 tons of metals have been recycled, while total waste recycled amounted to 33.8 million tons over this period, whose monetary value reached 62.2 billion Turkish Liras.

The recycling rate in Türkiye was 13 percent when the Zero-Waste Project was initiated, but the rate is presently around 27.2 percent. “We aim to increase the recycling rate further up to 35 percent in 2023,” Erdoğan said earlier.

Plastic bag usage has also declined as much as 65 percent, thanks to the regulation that requires businesses to charge consumers use of plastic bags.

Additionally, by ensuring the efficient use of water in all sectors, especially in agriculture and industry, the reuse rate of drainage water and treated wastewater reached 4 percent in the first half of this year.

The United Nations General Assembly on Dec. 14 unanimously accepted a resolution regarding the project presented by Türkiye, declaring March 30 as International Zero-Waste Day.

Accordingly, the U.N. will set up an advisory board committee comprising experts selected based on their knowledge, experience and expertise to introduce zero waste initiatives on a national scale and worldwide.

The first lady received the World Bank’s first-ever “Climate and Development Leadership Award” for the pioneering role she assumed in the fight against climate change with her project in July.

Accordingly, Erdoğan and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres signed a declaration of goodwill for the global promotion of the project in September.

Guterres called on U.N. member countries to expand the project globally, as environmentalist projects are “among the most important issues the U.N. is struggling with.”

Apart from Guterres, UNICEF’s Türkiye Representative Regina De Dominicis also signed the declaration of goodwill on the project to show her support for the initiative.