The country’s universities have been charged to come out with non-plastic materials for packaging purposes, as a way to protecting the environment.
The Obuasi Area Head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Mr. Prempeh Adarkwa Yiadom, who made the call at the celebration of this year’s World Environment Day at the AngloGold Club House at Obuasi, noted that the use of plastics is causing a lot of harm to us as a people.
“It is time our universities come out with innovative ideas for packaging purposes rather than the use of plastics”, he stated. He recalled the days when materials used for packaging were eco-friendly, as the waste generated from these traditional materials easily decompose naturally and noted that plastics on the other hand have a long duration of decomposition which can take centuries, leading to huge build-up of waste in the system.
Mr. Adarkwa Yiadom noted that there are other innovative ways of recycling used plastics to benefit the society and called on individuals to support the recycling idea.
On his part, Mr. George Owusu Ansah, Senior Manager in charge of Environment at AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mines noted that Ghanaians are literally choking on plastics in our societies and urged the people to collectively find sustainable solutions to dispose of plastics to save our environment.
He said AngloGold has supported the celebration of the occasion by organizing inter school debate between Obuasi Senior High Technical School and Christ the King SHS on single use plastics.
Mr. Owusu Ansah also said various basic schools in Obuasi are being taught how to use plastics to make bags and other items to benefit society.
Madam Emelia Asare of New Nsuta Basic School, in Obuasi, who was a beneficiary of a workshop sponsored by AngloGold Ashanti to train teachers on the use of used plastics for floral and other beautification works used the platform to thank the company and its partners for the gesture.
From Frederick Danso Abeam, Obuasi
