Whether you’re new to recycling or an experienced environmentalist, the possibility of living a waste-free life should’ve crossed your mind once or twice.
Although, in Nigeria we live in a society that believes that the best way to handle refuse is by burning or dumping them in a landfill or nearby water bodies, even though all of these actions damage the environment and upset the ecological balance of the planet.
Each year, approximately 32 million tonnes of waste are produced in Nigeria, of which 2.5 million tonnes are plastic waste and a whapping 70% ends up on the streets, gutters and market areas which ultimately contribute to more hazardous disasters such as flooding. In a recent CNN interview, the flooding situation in Lagos was described to be ” largely inhabitable and traumatic”, as the cause of the frequent flooding was deduced by fellow residents to be due to ‘poor drainage systems and clogged street gutters’.
This begs the question, “is it really possible to live waste free?”.
The simple answer is YES. yes it is.
But it doesn’t happen overnight.
We know that a huge chunk of our waste issues is due to the government’s lack of environmental policies, but we also need to acknowledge the various roles we play in destroying our environment.
The amount of waste we throw away can be cut down by incorporating a waste-free lifestyle, which is a concept that focuses on minimizing the waste produced by society, thereby reducing the dump that gets sent into landfills and water bodies. This can be applied using the 3 principles of waste.
Reduce. Cut down the amount of waste that we use in our homes, offices, shopping malls, and market places.
Reuse. Use whatever product you have until the end of its useful line.
Recycle. Instead of throwing your trash away, turn them into new useful products so that they can be of more use.
We have a waste problem, but can we solve it?
Join our community of waste-problem solvers today!
