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Can Nigeria turn the tide on plastic pollution?

Can Nigeria turn the tide on plastic pollution?

WHEN it rains heavily in Lagos, the torrents of water gushing down streets and sidewalks sweep up disposable drink cups, plastic bottles and packaging and dump them into the coastal city's drains and waterways. "Most floods in Lagos happen because of blockages of non-biodegradable polystyrene packages and not the volume of rainfall," said Joshua Babayemi, an environmental toxicologist at the University of Medical Sciences in Ondo, a state in southwestern Nigeria. But from this week, the tide of trash should at least contain fewer foam food containers as city authorities start enforcing a ban on single-use items that reflects nascent…
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Nigeria: Plastic bottles replace school fees

Nigeria: Plastic bottles replace school fees

WHEN a neighbour recommended Morit International School to Ijeoma Obiora three years ago and told her the tuition was paid not in cash but through plastic bottles, she found it hard to believe. She had never heard of such a thing. Today, her 13-year-old daughter has comfortably settled into the school. Patrick Mbamarah, Proprietor of Morit International School. Photo Courtesy: Patrick Mbamarah “Academically, the school is very good for my daughter, who’s now in JSS 1. Financially, it removes my worries about having to provide education for her on a stringent budget. These days, the first thing I do when…
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Congolese city turns its plastic problem into profit

Congolese city turns its plastic problem into profit

IN Bukavu, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the thousands of plastic bottles thrown into the Ruzizi River routinely clog the hydropower station's turbines, shutting it down for months at a time and plunging the city into darkness. But for Elie Mapenzi Matabaro, the city's plastic problem is an asset, allowing him to both make money and create jobs for young people. Seven years ago, his company, FDA Group, started transforming the bottles and other city waste into cheap, hard-wearing paving slabs that grace driveways and forecourts across the city. "There was no system for protection of the environment. We started…
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