Ecowaste Exhibition & ForumandAbu Dhabi Waste Management Center (Tadweer) today hostedan invitation-onlyvirtualroundtable,with a focus on responsible waste management during crises.
In early March 2020, as the crisis began to impact countries around the world, Tadweer immediately responded to the challenges it presented by implementing an integrated biomedical waste treatment programme, and adopted a comprehensive and strategy-led approach to an issue of utmost urgency. Since then, the UAE has been lauded globally as one of the true leaders in addressing the crisis, with intelligent waste management playing a vital role in ensuring contamination is kept to the lowest possible levels.
Speaking about the roundtable programme,His Excellency Dr. Salem Khalfan Al Kaabi, Director General, Tadweer, said: “The UAE has, from the very beginning of the crisis, been a shining example of responsibility and decisiveness thanks to the wisdom and commitment of our country’s leadership. And while the focus for most has been on preventing contamination and infection, while dealing with the immediate medical needs of those who have contracted the virus, medical waste managementhas been one of the core components of the nation’s response to the crisis.
“The demands placed upon us have been enormous. From securing new incinerator equipment, increasing heavy goods transportation infrastructure and speedy recruitment of essential key workers, the pressure has been relentless but we acted with immediacy and played a key role in reducing contamination and, therefore, infections, all the while protecting our precious environment. It is right that the lessons we have all learned are shared with our neighbours, and this EcoWASTE virtual roundtable has been incredibly important in helping us all prepare for future situations should they arise and benchmark our approaches against the latest international practices and expertise in responding to major global crises.”
During the roundtable session, representatives from a number of other key GCC municipalities were invited to discuss issues pertinent to waste management during a pandemic. These included Bahrain’s Ministry of Health and Ministry of Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning, Jordan’s Greater Amman Municipality, Oman’s Be’ah and Saudi Arabia’s Alahsa and Al Riyadh Municipalities.