Christopher E. Martin/CEO , Global Enviro Science
Trash, trash, everywhere trash. Why is trash everywhere in Tunisia? It’s about the Bins! My mother
used to say, “there is a place for everything and everything has its place.” This is true of trash and the place for trash, is in the Bin.
One huge reason trash is everywhere in the streets of Tunisia is the lack of enough Bins, too small of a Bin, no lid on the Bin or probably the number one reason, NO BIN! Of course, there is the irresponsible Tunisians who throw trash in the streets even when there is a Bin, but this is a subject for another day.
Where do Tunisians put trash if no Bin is conveniently located nearby? It is deposited on the pile of trash already collecting on the street. What if a Bin is nearby? It is usually full due to the responsible people properly disposing of their trash. If the bin is full, then the trash is put where, on the street by the bin.
Now let’s say everything went perfect with the trash. It was placed in a Bin and the trash truck came to pick it up to take it to the landfill. The trash Bin has no lid and the trash truck collection operation is far less than optimal. So, when the Bin is emptied, half of the trash now falls where, on the street! Now it takes more time and effort to pick up the trash from the Bin back on the street. Tunisia is not a best case study on how to collect trash.
Ok, so enough complaining. How do we get the trash in a Bin and then efficiently emptied into the truck bound for the landfill?
First, provide MORE trash Bins where trash is commonly discarded in the streets. This is not rocket science people. The trash collectors and citizens know where to place more bins. Or, we can just put the bin where there is already trash in the street!
Second, If the same trash Bins are over flowing with trash consistently, then more Bins are needed! One bin for 100 residents is not enough. It is more cost effective to have more Bins than to spend more in fuel for the trucks to empty them more often. NO, we don’t need a committee at the Ministry of Environment to commission a study. Believe me, it’s true.
Third, we need properly functioning lids on the Bins to keep the trash in the Bins. If the wind blows, the trash stays in the Bin. When the trash truck comes to empty the Bin, the trash falls in the truck, not on the street.
Next, we need uniform bins, so everyone knows what they look like, they all work the same way and one type of truck can easily empty them. This streamlines the process, makes it efficient and sustainable. BTW, we must have bins which last more than a few months. Commercial Bins are available which come with a 10 year warranty.
Lastly, we need common sense, a sense of pride and a sense of responsibility among the governing officials of Tunisia. It is impossible to make people do the right thing. They must want to do the right thing for themselves, the citizens and Tunisia.
