As part our objective to become a green port champion in the Pacific region, we decided to extend our reach to the far and wide community in our country to foster a dialogue for another important initiative on waste management and plastic waste in particular. With an holistic approach, Solomon Ports initiated the 3R (Reduce-Reuse-Recycle) campaign to make the society aware of the depletion of resources, the need to reduce our usage and recycle as much as we can to reduce our impact to the environment.
Although we understand that we cannot stop waste production entirely, everyone can make a significant contribution to reduce it. Think before you bin! It saves energy and natural resources, helps to reduce pollution and reduces the need for landfill. The 3R concept introduces a sequence of steps on how to manage waste properly. The top priority is to Reduce waste generation, then Reuse, and then Recycle, to give waste material a second chance before disposing them to the landfill.
As waste management is a critical issue for the city of Honiara, Solomon Ports is taking this initiative to encourage members of the public in Honiara towards proper waste disposal practices. Kicking off this project we installed rubbish bins along some of the busy streets, in and around the port and city, and schools as a start to introduce this concept to our people. We specifically wanted to target children at schools to instill the good habit of taking care of the environment at an early stage of their lives. All disposal bins have been outfitted with signs to distinguish between ‘General Waste, Cans, bottles, plastic and food waste and 3R signboards have been erected in several places in the city and port to create awareness on the project.
Solomon Ports is taking the lead in tackling this issue, and would like to encourage all organizations, companies, and individuals of Solomon Islands to adopt this initiative, so that it becomes part of their lifestyle. The project will be further extended to recycle plastic waste and compost all degradable materials city wide.