Cook Islands: $10 million project aims to reduce single-use plastics
A project to reduce the number of plastics entering the country, focused on the food and beverage sector, was discussed during a workshop in Rarotonga this week. Like other countries around the world, the Cook Islands is an importer and end user of items with single-use plastic packaging.
These packaging end up at Rarotonga’s single landfill located in Arorangi which is the main form of waste management for non-recyclables in the Cook Islands. The landfill is near to its capacity with no alternatives available for a secondary site due to limited land available.
On Wednesday, the National Environment Service (NES) presented the Cook Islands national project under the Global Environment Facility GEFs Circular Solutions to Plastic Pollution integrated programme – Reducing Single-use Plastics on Small Island Economies (RESPONSE).
NES manager environmental partnerships Hayley Weeks and senior environmental partnership coordinator Siana Whatarau delivered the project overview to the 15 participants at the GEF-8 Plastics RESPONSE Project Workshop that was held at The Rarotongan Beach Resort and Lagoonarium.
The objective of the project is to reduce the number of plastics entering the country, focused on the food and beverage sector. It is also to support enabling environments for reuse options and other circular solutions, with the intention of reducing the burden on the Cook Islands waste management system, and reducing pollution and harmful impacts of plastic.
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