July 4, 2022
Press releases
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Mongolia is the fourth-most polluted country in the world. The largest source of pollution is the burning of coal in the ger district areas for heating during the deadly cold winters. Also, the huge amounts of improper waste disposal are another source of pollution. Therefore, the Caritas Czech Republic has been working on plastic waste management in Mongolia with financial support from the European Union. Within the framework of the “Sustainable Plastic Recycling in Mongolia” project, the http://plastic-recycling.mn/ platform has just been developed and launched, to increase public awareness of waste collection, segregation and recycling.
The total amount of municipal solid waste generated and collected by licensed transportation entities was 2.4 million tonnes in 2020, an increase of 13% since 2019. Although more than 90% of waste is recyclable, we recycle less than 10% of it. People generally dispose of their unseparated waste at their building dumpsite, which is ultimately incinerated.
“If people segregate their waste at their homes and have them delivered to the collection point regularly, the total volume of waste will be reduced. Thus, we aim to encourage people to segregate their waste in their homes and provide proper information on how to sort waste at the source through this platform” said Mijidsuren Chimeddorj, Project Manager of the Sustainable Plastic Recycling in Mongolia project.
The http://plastic-recycling.mn/ platform is developed by the Mongolian Sustainable Development Bridge (MSDB) NGO, a partner organization of the project. The website contains recent and updated data and information on plastic waste and various kinds of training materials for waste management. It is also designed to encourage people to learn from video training materials and make a pledge to reduce their waste. All of the information and training materials are sorted by the target visitor: an individual, an organization as a whole, and a secondary educational institution. MSDB NGO will run the website and ensure its sustainability in the future.
About the project: The SPRIM project aims to contribute to economic prosperity and poverty reduction and support the development of a green economy and the transition towards a low-carbon, resource-efficient, and circular economy in Mongolia. It is implemented by the Caritas Czech Republic in Mongolia along with four project partners: Environment and Security Center of Mongolia, EcoSoum, Mongolian Sustainable Development Bridge, and T.G. Masaryk Water Research Institute. More information is found here.
