Blogs
What happens to waste when cleaning up becomes culture?
In Uganda, the picture is often very different. It is not uncommon to see someone toss a bottle through the window of a moving car. Those who handle our waste are often looked down upon, while the waste itself is treated as something to be moved elsewhere and forgotten.
Peter Mwesiga. (Courtesy)
By: Admin ., Journalist @New Vision
_____________
OPINION
By Peter Mwesiga
During the FIFA World Cup tournaments, images of Japanese football fans remaining behind after matches to collect rubbish from the stadium stands were going viral. Yet, this is nothing new. Since Japan’s World Cup debut in France in 1998, their supporters have quietly cleaned up after matches, whether their team wins or loses.
So, what is the deal with the Japanese and rubbish? Is it culture? Respect for shared spaces? Or simply an unwillingness to leave a mess behind for someone else to clean up? Whatever the reason, it is almost beside the point. What matters is that such attitudes have helped create a society where waste is sorted, recovered, recycled and valued as a resource.
In Uganda, the picture is often very different. It is not uncommon to see someone toss a bottle through the window of a moving car. Those who handle our waste are often looked down upon, while the waste itself is treated as something to be moved elsewhere and forgotten.
Unfortunately, waste refuses to be dumped and forgotten. When poorly managed, it has implications for our public health, greenhouse gas emissions, water bodies and drainage systems.
Yet, through my work with the Zero Waste Managers Association Uganda (ZWMAU), a member-led association of waste enterprises, practitioners and innovators, I have learned that waste, when properly managed, presents enormous opportunities. Through the association, members are demonstrating through new approaches that waste management does not have to end with collection and disposal.
To Ms Allen Kyarisima, the association’s executive director, “Waste only becomes waste when it is wasted. It can create jobs, restore depleted soils, provide high-quality animal feed and supply inputs for industrial innovation.”
I was particularly intrigued by one of these initiatives — black soldier fly (BSF) technology. The system uses the larvae of the black soldier fly to consume food waste and other organic materials. In the process, the larvae become a highly nutritious animal feed, while the residue is transformed into organic fertiliser. Combined with the recovery of paper, plastics and other inorganic waste, BSF offers an affordable, community-based approach to turning waste into valuable products.
Visiting one of the association’s BSF pilot sites in Namugongo, recently, I found a simple but effective operation that could easily be replicated. There were sections of BSF and larvae at different stages of growth. Mature flies laid eggs, larvae fed on organic waste, while packed bags of organic fertiliser and dried larvae awaited the market. Nearby, sorted plastics and other inorganic waste awaited collection for recycling and industrial processing.
Unfortunately, waste refuses to be dumped and forgotten. When poorly managed, it has implications for our public health, greenhouse gas emissions, water bodies and drainage systems.
Yet, through my work with the Zero Waste Managers Association Uganda (ZWMAU), a member-led association of waste enterprises, practitioners and innovators, I have learned that waste, when properly managed, presents enormous opportunities. Through the association, members are demonstrating through new approaches that waste management does not have to end with collection and disposal.
To Ms Allen Kyarisima, the association’s executive director, “Waste only becomes waste when it is wasted. It can create jobs, restore depleted soils, provide high-quality animal feed and supply inputs for industrial innovation.”
I was particularly intrigued by one of these initiatives — black soldier fly (BSF) technology. The system uses the larvae of the black soldier fly to consume food waste and other organic materials. In the process, the larvae become a highly nutritious animal feed, while the residue is transformed into organic fertiliser. Combined with the recovery of paper, plastics and other inorganic waste, BSF offers an affordable, community-based approach to turning waste into valuable products.
Visiting one of the association’s BSF pilot sites in Namugongo, recently, I found a simple but effective operation that could easily be replicated. There were sections of BSF and larvae at different stages of growth. Mature flies laid eggs, larvae fed on organic waste, while packed bags of organic fertiliser and dried larvae awaited the market. Nearby, sorted plastics and other inorganic waste awaited collection for recycling and industrial processing.
For Brenda Nnandu, founder of Yoola Kasasiro in Wakiso, behaviour change comes first. She has provided her clients with waste sorting bags and training. Yola also prioritises frequent collection for households and businesses that separate their waste. The organic waste is currently supplied to surrounding farmers, with her ambition being to transition to BSF technology for greater value addition.
“Food nutrients do not disappear simply because food becomes waste. Like energy, nutrients are transformed, not lost,” explains Robert Fula, an Agricultural Scientist at Katende Harambe Training Centre. “Instead of rotting in landfills, BSF technology redirects those nutrients back into productive use through animal feeds and organic fertilisers,” he adds.
The policy implications are also significant. Approaches such as BSF recover and retain value where waste is generated. They reduce pressure on landfills, create green jobs, support agriculture, contribute to climate action, and complement government waste management efforts.
Critically, however, these initiatives require support and an enabling environment. Members need affordable finance to establish BSF units, resource recovery facilities and innovation spaces. At the same time, sustained public awareness, alongside school and community programmes, is essential to embed the behaviour change on which these approaches depend.
Perhaps the biggest lesson from the Japanese fans at the World Cup is not that people should clean stadiums after football matches. It is that everyone has a role to play in managing the waste they produce. When that happens, waste stops being a burden and becomes a source of value.
The writer is the managing partner of Xantum Consulting
“Food nutrients do not disappear simply because food becomes waste. Like energy, nutrients are transformed, not lost,” explains Robert Fula, an Agricultural Scientist at Katende Harambe Training Centre. “Instead of rotting in landfills, BSF technology redirects those nutrients back into productive use through animal feeds and organic fertilisers,” he adds.
The policy implications are also significant. Approaches such as BSF recover and retain value where waste is generated. They reduce pressure on landfills, create green jobs, support agriculture, contribute to climate action, and complement government waste management efforts.
Critically, however, these initiatives require support and an enabling environment. Members need affordable finance to establish BSF units, resource recovery facilities and innovation spaces. At the same time, sustained public awareness, alongside school and community programmes, is essential to embed the behaviour change on which these approaches depend.
Perhaps the biggest lesson from the Japanese fans at the World Cup is not that people should clean stadiums after football matches. It is that everyone has a role to play in managing the waste they produce. When that happens, waste stops being a burden and becomes a source of value.
The writer is the managing partner of Xantum Consulting