Skip to main content

E-waste in Trinidad and Tobago

Image
By
What is e-waste? E-waste is short for electronic waste. It is unwanted electronic products. That older mobile phone with the broken screen sitting in your desk drawer ready to be thrown out is an example of e-waste. E-waste contains metals and chemicals that can be harmful to human health and the environment. Our aim should be to dispose properly and reduce, reuse and recycle.

A heaping 53.6 million metric tonnes (Mt) of electronic waste was generated worldwide in 2019. That is an increase of 21 per cent in just five years. This is according to the UN’s Global E-waste Monitor 2020. The report also states that only 17.4% of 2019’s e-waste was collected and recycled. 14th October each year is International E-waste Day coordinated by the WEEE Forum and its members which focuses on highlighting the profile of the e-waste issue.

How are we treating with e-waste in Trinidad and Tobago? There is no specific e-waste legislation or policy but we do have a general and dated (2015) National Waste Recycling Policy and then the Waste Management Rules (2021). We have the EMA (Environmental Management Authority) and IMA (Institute of Marine Affairs) doing their usual to protect the environment. We have the Basel Convention Regional Centre for Training and Technology Transfer for the Caribbean (located in Trinidad) who conducted an E-waste Assessment in 2013. They are currently conducting a survey on e-waste and when I saw that, it prompted me to write this blog post and share the survey on the Trinidad and Tobago reddit.

When I Google "ewaste in Trinidad" I see that there are several companies offering e-waste disposal services locally. The local media has written about the topic and there are some e-waste projects like RSC's project RIDE. What are some things that other Caribbean countries are doing? Jamaica is developing an E-waste Disposal Programme. The Caribbean e-Waste Management Inc. is located in Barbados. In 2019 an e-waste survey was conducted by Miss Penelope DeFreitas of the University of Guyana.

My research for this topic is showing that we in Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean are aware of the problem and surrounding issues and are working on solutions but not enough is being done. We in Trinidad and Tobago need to wake up and smell the coffee and take action now. Educate the population and provide options for e-waste disposal and recycling. E-waste management can also be a revenue earner for the country. I have emailed the Ministry of Digital Transformation and asked, "What is the Ministry's position on ewaste and what is going to be done for ewaste?" I also invited BCRC-Caribbean to take part in a Q and A for the blog.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A pot of callaloo

By
Call for Submissions: Archipelagic Entanglements   https://singaporeunbound.org/opp/archipelagic-entanglements When I saw the call for submissions online I was doubtful. I do not know enough history. I do not understand the topic. Then after chatting with my friend Chatty I realised maybe I can be the topic. My ethnic and racial makeup is an archipelagic entanglement. Colonialism meets indentureship meets slavery. My mom is East Indian muslim and my dad is French, Portuguese and Mulato christian and who knows what else. I am an example of a pot of callaloo. Everyone's favorite Sunday lunch. I am what happens when lineages cross oceans and histories collide. I am thinking to myself now, what is the message I want to put forward with my blog post? What is the direction I want to take? Maybe it is this. What can we do when we have such a rich heritage and know so little of our own history? First of all I do not think I am alone with this struggle. I did not realise this until I though...
Post a Comment
Read more

Cup of coffee

By
This is a chapter from my latest book called Breezes of Tobago . The cool morning breeze blew the hat off the tourist passing the coffee shop. We sat at the table waiting for our order of coffee and bagels. I had stayed up late writing and was now needing caffeine to stay awake. On entering the veranda of the coffee shop, the sign reads "happiness is a cup of coffee" and "sip your troubles away". This had me thinking about what is happiness? And was the theme of my chat with Chatty as we enjoyed our breakfast in Tobago. I told my friend Chatty that if we could put happiness in a bottle and sell it we would be rich. My friend Chatty then told me that money cannot buy happiness but it was a good idea to make a living. If according to the sign, happiness is a cup of coffee then maybe happiness is coffee in a bottle then. We could call it Caffibean, a taste of the Caribbean in Tobago, a blend of the happiest coffee beans from Tobago. Tobago is not known for its coffee p...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sandy beaches

By
This is a chapter from my latest book called Breezes of Tobago . This story begins on a cool Friday evening in May. Fridays are the best days. Already a great start. It had rained earlier in the day and the clouds were moving away and the sun peeking through. I walked from the apartment where I was staying to Pigeon Point beach. Along the way I stopped for coconut water freshly extracted from the nut and straight into my mouth leaving traces on my cotton jersey. They say that coconut water is the drink of God—fresh from the nut, sweet with a hint of salt, a liquid reminder that paradise can exist in small and simple things. They did not say that but my friend Chatty did. It is my friend Chatty's first trip to Tobago. I asked him what he thinks of Tobago so far? He grinned, wiping a drop of coconut water from the corner of his mouth. "Man… it is like stepping into a painting. The air, the colors, the way everything smells after the rain—it is unreal. I did not know paradise cam...
Post a Comment
Read more