A Rising Star of Plastic Waste Recycling in Pakistan

Ali Jabir

Islamabad: “From plastic waste, we make a variety of everyday items such as benches, tables, wracks, makeshift bathrooms and so on. Our products are not only used locally but also exported to other countries,” said Green Earth Recycling Project Business Head Bilal Ahmed.

We also produce manhole covers from plastic waste and have installed 350 at Lahore’s, further said Bilal. “The company was also selling six-layer wood pulp extracted from a tetra pack for Rs 100 per kg that has four layers of plastic, one of aluminium, and one of paper.”

He stated that the project’s machinery was previously imported from Germany, China and Taiwan, but we are now working on indigenisation.

“Our products are environmentally friendly as we do not use any chemicals during the processing and segregation of plastics for recycling,” Ahmed said. The company also creates staple fibre from plastic bottles to prepare non-concrete and water, snow, and pest-resistant washrooms and kitchens that are 95 per cent recycled, he added.

It would not be out of place to mention Greed Earth Recycling, Lasani Fibre Industries, and Tetra Pak as pioneers in this business; they are aggressively working on waste recycling into reusable, eco-friendly products.

Lasani Fibre Industries is a leading manufacturer of regenerated, recycled or carded polyester fibre from pet bottles in the country. It recycled about six million PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles last year.

It is one of the Pepsi factories collecting sites and also works with Coca-Cola, Nestle and other companies. “We recycled approximately 18,000 metric tons (6 million) of bottles last year. In addition to Pepsico factories, we collaborate with Coca-Cola, Nestle, and others,” said a company representative on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to the media.

“Our company prepares 32 products from PET bottles with a capacity of producing 55 metric tons of polyester fibre daily,” he said, adding that some 11,000 metric tons of PET bottles were recycled from January 2023 to July 2023, despite the fact that 170,000 Mt bottles are produced in Pakistan for the beverage industry annually.

Turning Crisis into Opportunity

The country’s economic meltdown, increasing inflation and mass exodus of educated youth amid unemployment pressure call for exploring novel business ideas for the livelihood and sustenance of our youth capital.

Experts believe that shifting from traditional businesses and industries to modern and novel ideas like plastic waste recycling can offer innovative and eco-friendly businesses and livelihoods for our idle and jobless youth.

Pakistan has emerged among the top populous countries, having a huge population of 240 million, with over 65 percent of its population comprised of youth who barely had any clear direction to improve their lifestyle, living standards and income.

The country, according to the International Trade Administration (ITA) US study, produced some 49.6 million metric tons of solid waste per year, with an annual increase of 2.4 percent. It also lacks dedicated infrastructure based on scientific lines to manage waste collection, dumping and eco-friendly degradation.

Pakistan’s massive waste generated never makes its journey to a proper dumping site or a technically managed source to be reproduced into eco-friendly or sustainable solutions. Therefore, both the public and private sectors will have to initiate small- to large-scale projects for waste collection and recycling.

According to industry experts, the local market will continue to offer sizeable business opportunities to local and foreign companies for the foreseeable future, stated in the ITA study.

However, we can see some scattered initiatives like the ‘Green Earth Recycling’ project in Lahore that can recycle hundreds of tons of plastic per day, producing a number of waste-recycled items like manhole covers, benches, toilet waste bins, etc. The company also creates staple fibre from plastic bottles, whereas waste from plastic recycling is reused for making other products.

Empowering Entrepreneurs

The Lahore Waste Management Company is also offering young entrepreneurs and innovators to collaborate with it by coming up with implementable solutions for plastic recycling. Methane gas management and other unique recycling solutions can help generate a new circular economy benefiting from the dark gold of plastic waste still unexplored.

In Islamabad, the Trash Bee CEO Arsalan Ayaz, a university graduate and entrepreneur, has established an environmental services business that offers a waste recycling process. The company Trash Bee receives different types of waste and converts it into useful materials like raw materials, reusable products and sustainable items that are environmentally friendly, and can be used for various industrial units across the country.

Arsalan Ayaz claims that it’s a comprehensive approach taken by Trash Bee, ensuring that waste materials are repurposed effectively, thereby reducing the strain on natural resources and contributing to a more sustainable future.

The environmentalist claims that the lack of academia, industry and policymaking is further aggravating the waste disposal and recycling challenge, and there is a dire need to patronise and promote this business.

We seldom see any initiative meant for bridging the waste generation, disposal and recycling gap that adds to already growing waste heaps choking our sewerage systems in megacities and posing serious environmental and health hazards.

Therefore, a shift is required to transform the conventional industry into a modern, circular and sustainable industry of plastic recycling to help grow our economy and generate employment for communities living miserable lives due to economic stress in the country.

Ali Jabir is an Islamabad-based APP correspondent, and the feature is released by APP. All information and facts provided are the sole responsibility of the writer.