1. FROM WASTE MANAGEMENT
TO MATERIAL MANAGEMENT:
ZERO WASTE IN THE ARAB WORLD
IndyACT
July, 2010
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© 2010 IndyACT / GAIA

2. Table of Content
Executive Summary 3
1.0 Introduction 4
1.1 IndyACT – The League of Independent Activists 4
1.2 GAIA – The Global Alliance for Incineration Alternatives 4
1.3 Objectives of the Report 4
2.0 Fundamentals of Zero Waste 5
2.1 The Zero Waste Concept 5
2.2 Objectives of Zero Waste 5
2.3 Principles of Zero Waste 5
2.4 Implementation Strategies for Zero Waste 6
2.4.1 Setting Zero Waste Targets 6
2.4.2 Extended Producers’ Responsibility 7
2.4.3 Providing Incentives IndyACT 7
2.4.4 Developing the Resource Recovery Industry 8
2.4.5 Incineration and Landfill Bans 8
2.4.6 Public Participation 9
2.5 The Benefits of Zero Waste 9
2.6 Zero Waste Around the Globe 10
3.0 Waste Resources in the Arab World 11
3.1 Situation in the Region 12
3.2 Material Management in Industrialized Arab Nations 12
3.2.1 Waste Management in Industrialized Arab Nations 12
3.2.2 Zero Waste in Industrialized Arab Nations 13
3.3 Material Management in Service-Based Arab Nations 13
3.3.1 Waste Management in Service-Based Arab Nations 13
3.3.2 Zero Waste in Service-Based Arab Nations 14
4.0 Achieving Zero Waste in the Arab World 15
4.1 Forming A Zero Waste Committee 15
4.2 Legislation 15
4.3 Funding 15
5.0 References 16
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3. Executive Summary
Zero Waste is a new goal for a new century - one that seeks to redesign the way that resources and materials flow
through society taking a ‘whole system’ approach. It is a design principle which ensures that products are made to be
reused, repaired or recycled back into nature or the marketplace. The philosophy has arisen out of the realisation that the
wastefulness of our society is compromising the ability of nature to sustain our needs and the needs of future generations.
It is a new approach that already exists and is being pioneered by leading corporations, municipalities, and progressive
governments.
Zero Waste envisions the complete redesign of the industrial system so that we no longer view nature as an
endless supply of materials for making products that break down within a period and are then discarded into landfills or
incinerators.
Zero Waste is not only about recycling and diverting waste from landfills and incinerators. It envisions the restructuring
of production and distribution systems to prevent waste from being manufactured from the outset. Zero Waste recognizes
that production and economic systems are not linear, but represent circular or web-like relationships.
Zero Waste is a target for all sectors of society to aim for - one that resets the compass so that governments,
communities and businesses no longer base their viability on wasting the Earth’s resources.
Zero Waste is not reliant purely on recycling. The growing volume of waste is the result of wasteful production
processes and excess packaging. In order to solve the growing waste problem, steps should be taken to reduce the amount
of waste produced by industries and decrease the amount thrown out by consumers.
Zero Waste is a total approach from the beginning to the end of the production process. It incorporates the principles
of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), which ensure manufacturers take responsibility for the entire lifecycle of their
products and packaging. If a product and its packaging cannot be reused, recycled or composted then the producer should
bear the cost of collection and safe disposal.
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Government policy can encourage manufacturers to eliminate materials and products that are not reusable, recyclable
or compostable. Producer responsibility legislation is already emerging around the world. In Europe, for example, the End
of Life Vehicles Directive and the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directives set high targets for reuse and
recycling and exclude the use of hazardous materials.
Other key principles of Zero Waste include:
• The precautionary principle: when in doubt, leave out
• Design for disassembly: increases the chances to fix a product instead of throwing it all out and buy a new one
• Reverse logistics: we need to build a system that insures the flow of material in both ways through the human
system
• Proximity principle: using local products not only benefits local economy, but also has environmental and
sustainability benefits
Benefits of Zero Waste are:
• Environmental protection: ‘Zero Waste’ has the least impact on environment among all solutions. It reduces
pollution to air, land and water. It preserves resources, and reduces greenhouse gases the most.
• Economical development: ‘Zero Waste’ generates more job opportunities than all other solutions. It is the
cheapest solution, and creates raw material for industry thus reducing the need for import of raw material. It
empowers local communities and increases tourism.
To implement ‘Zero Waste’ governments should:
• adopt a ‘Zero Waste’ strategy with specific short- medium- and long-term targets for the reduction of waste
generation and includes all ‘Zero Waste’ principles and concepts,
• form a ‘Zero Waste’ committee or agency charged in implementing the Zero Waste strategy and achieving the
set targets,
• adopt Extended Producer Responsibility legislation,
• ban the use of incinerators as a waste management option completely,
• develop the resource recovery industry,
• provide incentives for the public to reduce production of waste,
• insure public participation in all aspects of the material management approach.
The Arab world has the potential to benefit from such an approach, and should strive to adopt the ‘Zero Waste’
concept and principles.
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© 2010 IndyACT / GAIA

4. 1.0
Introduction 1.1 INDYACT } The League of Independent Activists
IndyACT is a global non-political league of independent environmental,
social and cultural activists aiming to achieve an active, healthy, safe, and
equitable planet. Founded in the summer of 2006, when a group of veteran and
skilled activists from different countries came together to work on the worst
environmental disaster in the history of the Eastern Mediterranean – the Lebanese
oil spill resulting from the July 06 war.
Now, IndyACT is running several local, regional and international campaigns
that use non-violent and innovative ideas to inspire positive change. IndyACT
mainly operates in the Arab region and international fora, but is also present in the
Americas, in Europe and in the Pacific.
IndyACT’s motto is “Passion with Professionalism”, which is reflected in
all of its projects and activities. Passion provides the drive for perfection and
achieving the greatest results, while professionalism provides a high quality output
as well as strong efficiency. Combining passion and professionalism signifies the
high standards applied in the private sector are being delivered with the passion
and innovation of social entrepreneurs.
1.2 GAIA } The Global Alliance for Incineration Alternatives
GAIA is a worldwide alliance of non-profit organizations and individuals
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who recognize that our planet’s finite resources, fragile biosphere and the health
of people and other living beings are endangered by polluting and inefficient
production practices and health-threatening disposal methods.
We oppose incinerators, landfills, and other end-of-pipe interventions.
Our ultimate vision is a just, toxic-free world without incineration. Our goal is
to implement “clean production”, and the creation of a closed-loop, materials-
efficient economy where all products are reused, repaired or recycled back into
the marketplace or nature.
GAIA members work through regional networks and issue workgroups
which provide the opportunity to transcend national and regional borders in order
to collaborate with others around the world.
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE REPORT
The alarmingly steep waste generation rates in the Arab world coupled with
the ominous future predictions for growth calls for us to reconsider the way we
are currently managing our waste. Developing countries lack the resources and
infrastructure to dispose their waste by traditional means, whereby most villages
in rural areas still rely on uncontrolled burning of their waste. On the other side
of the spectrum, wealthier Arab nations have become industrialized nations with
the highest rate of waste generation. Although these countries have installed state-
of-the-art treatment and disposal technologies, the question to be asked is how
effective and sustainable are end-of-pipe technologies when global consumption
is taking us to the limits of our natural resources. Zero Waste, a relatively recent
concept based on material management principles, may hold the key to our
looming waste crisis, and at the same time help close the loop of material flow
and enable us to reach sustainable societies.
The following report investigates the applicability of the principles of Zero
Waste to the developing and developed Arab states. The report recommends
material management practices to achieve sustainable solution for the waste by
conserving our finite resources and eliminating unsustainable and polluting end-
of-pipe disposal technologies
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5. 2.0
Fundamentals 2.1 THE ZERO WASTE CONCEPT
With their failure to achieve the highly-prioritized “waste prevention”
of Zero Waste and famous three R’s (reduce, reuse and recycle) policies, countries are
beginning to realize that integrated solid waste management is not the solution
it was believed to be. The focus of decision makers in some developing
and developed nations is slowly but steadily shifting to a broader and more
sustainable solution – which is the integration of material management or
the concept of ‘Zero Waste’. Policy makers are questioning the logic behind
the emphasis on disposal as a solution to wasted materials when it is more
economical and environmentally sustainable to recover discarded materials
and gradually eliminate the ones that are not “recoverable”. Morever, all
industrial systems, from design, extraction, production and distribution are
being rethought.
Zero Waste is a relatively recent concept in waste management.
According to Murray 2002, the term originates from the successful Japanese
industrial concept of Total Quality Management (TQM). By emphasizing
on the whole lifecycle of products, Zero Waste manages the sources of
waste rather than the manage waste itself; Thus, the disease rather than the
symptom. Zero Waste challenges the logic behind handling wasted materials,
which are the outcome of the material lifecycle, independently from their
production and consumption processes. Therefore, in a Zero Waste system,
resource management is the only solution to our mounting waste crisis. “The
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starting point is not the waste sector as such but the systems of production
and consumption of which waste forms a part” (Murray, 2002).
2.2 OBJECTIVES OF ZERO WASTE
Although its name suggests otherwise, the Zero Waste concept does
not claim to eliminate waste completely, but aims to achieve it as a goal that
we constantly strive through. It is similar to the ‘Zero Defect’ goal set by
Toshiba who have reached an astonishing result of one defect per million in
their products. We might never go down to zero, but by starting with Zero
Waste principles we can reach the closest to zero. With this in mind, Zero
Waste aims to achieve the following:
1) Clean production: Zero Waste aims to phase out the production
and utilization of toxic chemicals by redesigning products and manufacturing
methods. In other words, why focus on how to treat or remediate
anthropogenic contaminants, that resist the natural processes of material
breakdown, when you can gradually eliminate their production and utility
within production and manufacturing processes.
2) Environmental protection from waste treatment: The second
objective of Zero Waste is the reduction of the air, water and soil emissions
resulting from product utility and the end of pipe treatment waste. In
such case, disposal technologies such as incineration and landfilling, which
ultimately emit contaminants into the environment, are not in line with the
zero discharge and emissions objective of Zero Waste.
3) Sustainable material economy: On another level, Zero Waste
aims to reduce material consumption in general, and to eliminate material
waste for disposal. Material consumption even the non-toxic ones that are
recycled, still contribute to greenhouse gas emissions due to the fact that they
need to be processed, manufactured and transported. Zero Waste principles
address material consumption intensity, and regulate consumption patterns.
2.3 PRINCIPLES OF ZERO WASTE
When translated into practical terms, Zero Waste embraces, within
a single framework, familiar environmental principles, the Extended
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6. Producers’ Responsibility in particular, Precautionary Principles, the
Proximity Principle and the Diversity Principle. These principles are the
cornerstones of the Zero Waste concept and objectives and help guide
decisions without prescribing specific strategies.
• Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR): EPR extends
manufacturers’ responsibilities beyond their current accountabilities
- for worker health & safety, consumer safety, and production costs
- to also include responsibility for life cycle of their products and
associated packaging. The essence of EPR is its requirement for
manufacturers to ‘take back’ their end-of-life products and create
closed-looped systems that prevent pollution and manage an
efficient use of resource.
• Precautionary Principle: The Precautionary Principle prohibits
the adoption of a technology or product unless safeguards are
in place and if there is a (sufficient) reason to believe that the
technology or product causes no harm to human health or to the
environment.
• Proximity Principle: With regards to resource recovery, the
Proximity Principle suggests that the highest use for resources or
recovered materials should be sought within the shortest distance
possible. Accordingly, this principle promotes the unnecessary cost
of transportation, as well as the development of local economies.
• Diversity Principle: The Diversity Principle calls for the use of
customized and community-based solutions for dealing with wasted
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resources as opposed to relying on “cookie-cut” capital-intensive
structures that are generally rigid and of massive scale.
Other supporting Zero Waste principles include:
• Extended operator’s liability, which extends the liabilities of
waste facility operators (landfills, incinerators, etc) and includes the
long-term environmental and human health impacts caused by their
operations.
• Design for disassembly, where industry makes sure that their
products can be disassembled into parts that can be replaced instead
of replacing the whole product.
• Selling services rather than products, makes it more profitable
for manufacturers to produce higher quality and longer lasting
products. One example is Xerox Europe, which was able to reduce
their product waste by 90% and increase profits by 75 million US
dollars through renting their high quality photocopiers rather than
selling them.
• Reverse logistics, where retail distribution systems are used
in both directions, to supply products and to take-back the same
products for recycling.
2.4 IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES FOR ZERO WASTE
The Zero Waste principles above constitute the backbone of the Zero
Waste Concept. However, when it comes to implementation, a continually
adjusted strategy is needed. Key strategies to transform the traditional linear
production and disposal process into a Zero Waste system include:
2.4.1 Setting Zero Waste Targets
Setting clear goals with defined timeframes within a waste strategy is
one of the first steps to achieve Zero Waste. On the first hand, such a feat
instigates a drive to accomplish the goal due to its associated accountability.
When a target is set, it is often accompanied by a governing body who is
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7. responsible to oversee its success. On the second hand , “ambitious” targets
encourage radical innovations and thereby shorten the road to Zero Waste.
Setting targets also help mitigate the threat of vested interest groups working
against Zero Waste.
Targets should be continuously monitored, periodically updated,
and have clear designated timeframes for the various components of the
waste stream. Robin Murray suggests aiming for recycling 50% of the waste
stream in 5 years, 70% in 10 years, 85% in 15 years, and Zero Waste in 20
years (Murray R., 2002).
2.4.2 Adopting Extended Producers’ Responsibility
Also known as ‘producer take-back’, EPR is a fundamental cornerstone
of Zero Waste that can be easily adopted within a country’s waste plan. The
basic theory behind EPR is to place the social and environmental impacts
of a product within the responsibilities of the party that is most adept at
improving these impacts – or, in other words, the product manufacturer. The
manufacturer becomes accountable for the impacts imparted throughout
the lifecycle of the commodity including material extraction, production,
product usage, and product discard.
Several countries have adopted EPR within their waste management
strategies. The European Union’s Directive on Waste from Electrical and
Electronic Equipment (WEEE) requires that producers be responsible for
end-of-life management of their products. The Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD) has also embraced EPR as an
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economically efficient way to internalize the cost of product waste and push
manufacturers to:
• Adopt cleaner production and efficiently use natural resources;
• Design products more durable products that can be easily reused,
disassembled or recycled;
• Create safer and more efficient recycling systems;
• Reduce the disposal of wasted material, leading to a reduction
in the number of landfills and incinerators and their accompanying
environmental impacts;
• Absorb the cost of disposal from the government and the
taxpayer; and
• Reduce the burden off municipalities for the physical and or
financial requirements of waste management.
Another important benefit of EPR is social justice. When EPR is
applied the cost of product disposal will be reflected in the cost of the
product itself. Thus, consumers will be paying for the disposal of the products
they consume rather than paying a flat rate to the local or centralized waste
management institute.
2.4.3 Providing Incentives
Setting fiscal and non-fiscal incentives is a sure-fire way to prod the
industry to adhere to a Zero Waste strategy. A mixture of incentives may be
used to ensure progress towards a Zero Waste goal, such as:
• Landfill bans: Materials that can be recovered from the waste
stream should be progressively banned from landfill disposal. Also,
items that are known to create toxic leachate problems should also
be banned from landfill disposal.
• Pay as you throw, and save as you recycle: In line with the
Polluter Pays Principle, waste generators should pay directly and
in proportion to their wasting behaviour. On the other hand,
residences that recycle or separate their waste will get tax breaks for
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8. saving resources. This is one of the best ways to educate the public
that there is a cost to wasting and economical gains for recycling.
• True cost products: The price of any good should also include
its resource management costs.
• True cost waste disposal and differential pricing: During the
phase out of disposal, it is important that real cost accounting and
differential pricing principles are used to calculate disposal fees in
order to encourage resource recovery and source segregation as well
as to discourage wasting.
• Landfill and packaging levies: Landfill levies or levies on non-
recyclable packaging waste and can be charged to fund a Zero Waste
strategy and/or council.
• Deposit refund schemes: A simple mechanism to promote
recycling can be set up based on the return of a monetary deposit
to a consumer upon the return of used food and beverage
containers. This also creates meaningful income and employment
opportunities.
• Separate at Source: Establish mandatory wet/dry segregation of
household waste.
2.4.4 Developing the Resource Recovery Industry
The supply of products and materials to consumers is a complicated
chain of processes such as extraction, design, manufacturing, retail, marketing,
supply chain management as well as transport. Similarly, the recovery of end-
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of-life products back into the market requires a reciprocal flow of goods,
which is also known as the reverse logistics. However, this return chain – the
resource recovery industry – does not emerge spontaneously through the
power of market forces without the help of an effective combination of
incentives, such as:
• Developing the recycling industry
1 Resource Recovery Centers are materials
• Developing Resource Recovery Centers1
processing and trading hubs where wasted • Organizing and facilitating material recovery systems
materials are collected, processed, dismantled • Developing community recycling parks
and marketed back into the economy. Materials
from recycling drop-off points, industry, retail, • Designing a material recovery system that complements2 the
and construction and demolition businesses wasting system
feed into these centers and are then sold to the
recycling sector, industry or the public. • Developing resource recovery facility standards
2 A recourse recovery solution should be
• Providing curbside collections to all households
provided for all waste outlets such as street- • Developing multiple stream collections
side barrels, transfer stations, household wheel • Establishing waste exchanges3
bins, etc.
• Stockpiling resources4
3 A venue for businesses to utilize each other’s
waste products.
2.4.5 Banning Incineration
4 Stockpiling is a proven strategy for managing
One fundamental strategy of Zero Waste is a total ban on all types
commodity price fluctuations, or waiting for
markets to emerge, but it does require space. of incineration, including plasma arc, pyrolysis, waste-to-energy, gasification
and other waste destruction technologies.
The problems related to waste incineration, a technology that came
into vogue in the 1980s, are astounding. They include environmental
catastrophes due to unavoidable pollutant releases, as well as high economic
costs, unsustainability, and incompatibility with other waste management
systems. With regards to their impact on the environment and human
health, incinerators are a major source of dioxins, a family of halogenated
organic compounds, that are known teratogens, mutagens and suspected
carcinogens, and which are persistent bio-accumulators. Among their
many health effects, dioxins are known to cause cancer, immune system
damage, reproductive and developmental problems. Incinerators are also
responsible for considerable mercury pollution5 ; release of other heavy
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9. 5 Mercury is a powerful neurotoxin, impairing metal pollutants such as lead, cadmium, arsenic, and chromium; production
motor, sensory and cognitive functions
of other (non-dioxin) halogenated hydrocarbons; emission of acid gases
that are precursors of acid rain; release of air-borne particulates; emission
of greenhouse gases; and generation of toxic ash.
The issue with incineration is that even if you can make it safe,
you cannot make it sustainable. Incinerators place huge financial burdens
on communities, drain local communities of financial resources, waste
energy and materials, hinders local economic development, undermine
waste prevention and rational approaches to discard management, have an
operating experience in industrialized countries filled with problems, can go
financially bankrupt from tonnage shortfalls, and often leave citizens and
taxpayers paying the bill.
Incinerators, particularly those that have pollution control systems
installed, are formidably expensive. Local authorities that invest in incinerators
often find they have less money to invest in more sustainable forms of waste
management. Thus, incinerators need a continued generation of waste to
support their high building and operating costs. Studies have clearly shown
that the adoption of incineration technologies hinders waste minimization
and prevention efforts, which is a main contradiction to the Zero Waste
concept.
Incinerator companies have been trying to promote their technology
in various ways to overcome the mounting public opposition to incinerators.
The latest argument is that waste-to-energy incinerators are an alternative
source of energy and can reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Nevertheless,
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if we consider life-cycle analysis of materials and resources, recycling
reduces energy use many times more than waste-to-energy incinerators.
Recycling avoids the energy-intensive processes of extracting, processing
and transporting raw materials.
For example, recycling paper has added climate benefits by sustaining
trees and avoiding additional harvesting. This maintains carbon storage in
forests, both in trees and in the soil. Waste-to-energy incinerators would
actually be increasing greenhouse gas emissions if they are replacing or
hindering recycling and waste minimization.
2.4.6 Insuring Stakeholder and Public Participation
Another important component of a Zero Waste Strategy is providing
a venue for public participation as well as access to information.
Various private, civil and public stakeholders are involved in the
realization of Zero Waste targets, and the role of each is crucial to ensure
success. However, it is the public that possesses overriding will to implement
Zero Waste strategies and influence decision-making, and should be involved
formally and informally. A range of awareness and educational programs
should be included within the Zero Waste strategy so as to further involve
the public and civil society. Also a mechanism for the participation of public
in the formation of the strategy should be put in place.
2.5 THE BENEFITS OF ZERO WASTE
Obvious health and environmental benefits accompany Zero Waste’s
clean production or “zero toxicity” and environmental protection or “zero
discharge” objectives. In addition to conserving natural resources, the
benefits of Zero Waste include:
• Development of local economies: By tapping on valuable
resources in the waste stream, Zero Waste stimulates the economy
through its creation of more employment opportunities. In fact,
when compared to waste incineration, Zero Waste creates on average
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10. twenty to thirty five percent more jobs. Moreover, the labor required
for Zero Waste implementation can be satisfied by local markets
as opposed to the high-skill requirements of technologies such as
incineration.
Local economies are also revived with Zero Waste due to its reliance
on community based solutions rather than capital-intensive infrastructure.
Accordingly, remote rural areas can better manage their wasted resources
as well as flourish economically in the absence of the traditional centralized
disposal-based solutions.
Zero Waste also strengthens the local economy since it favors
local manufacturing of environmentally safe products without breaking
international trade treaties, most notably that of the World Trade
Organization (WTO). This is because a Zero Waste strategy would ensure
that products that cause environmental damage are subject to bans or
higher taxation upon import. Therefore, local products, that are subject to
clean production regulations, could better compete with these imports. For
example, if Lebanon establishes a tax on PVC to reflects its environmental
impact, the Lebanese industry, which will reduce the use of PVC in its
products to reduce tax cost in the Lebanese market, will have an advantage
to imported products, such as from China, that will not adjust content of
their product just for the Lebanese market.
• Reduces global greenhouse gas emissions: Knowing that climate
change is the worst environmental threat facing humanity, there
IndyACT to reduce greenhouse gas emissions urgently in all
is a great need
possible ways. Material flow and use in human society account to
about 35% of all greenhouse gas emissions. Zero Waste is focused
around conserving resources and recycling processes. This saves
huge amounts of energy in the extraction, transportation and
processing of raw material.
• Reduction of imports: As a direct consequence of the higher rates
of material reuse and recovery associated with Zero Waste, local
needs for imported materials diminish. Many industries prefer to
rely on cheaper raw material than to import more expensive goods,
when of the same caliber.
• Reduced long-term costs: Long-term waste disposal costs are
greatly reduced by Zero Waste since additional costs such as
remediation for contaminated sites will be avoided.
• Economic development and eco-tourism: A Zero Waste policy
will help protect and promote a country’s image as a green tourist
destination without hidden health hazards associated with dioxin
and groundwater contamination.
2.6 ZERO WASTE AROUND THE GLOBE
Although Zero Waste is a new concept, decision makers are more
and more realizing its importance. Even at the United Nations level Zero
Waste is becoming more and more familiar. During the 18th session of the
UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD 18) convened from
3-14 May 2010, at UN Headquarters in New York, many country delegates
stressed the importance of Zero Waste as the best way for dealing with the
waste problem and sustainable consumption.
Communities that have already passed Zero Waste legislation, plans
or resolutions include Buenos Aires (the capital of Argentina), Scotland, and
the Australian city of Canberra, as well as the county of Western Australia.
In the USA, Zero Waste targets have been adopted by Del Norte County,
the city of Seattle, San Francisco, Santa Cruz County, San Luis Obispo
County, and Boulder City, Colorado. Toronto adopted ‘Zero Waste by 2010’
in January 2007.
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11. Zero Waste campaigns by NGOs, experts, and government officials
are also operating in South Australia, England, Italy, Ireland, India, the
Philippines, among many others.
Major international businesses aiming for Zero Waste include Toyota,
Apple, Bell Canada, Kimberley Clark, Hewlett-Packard, Honda Motor Corp
and Xerox Corp.
3.0
Waste 3.1 SITUATION IN THE REGION
Comprising 22 independent states6 with an approximate population
Resources of 325 million people, the Arab Region is highly dependent on its non-
renewable resources; a fact which subjects its fragile environment to
in the tremendous strain exacerbated by the recent economic liberalization efforts
and globalization.
Arab World Generally, across the region, the waste resource sector is inadequately
structured and regulated. Most Arab states have not yet established proper
waste legislation and long-term strategies. Waste management in the region
is also characterized by:
• Shortage in infrastructure for comprehensive waste and resource
6 Based on the Arab League, the Arab States management;
include Algeria, Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti,
Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya,
• Unsustainable consumption patterns;
Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, • Risks to public health and threats to environmental resources;
Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia,
UAE, and Yemen. http://www.arab.de/arabinfo/
• Vast expansion in urban development
league.htm. Other sources consider Iran and IndyACT
• Risks to public health and threats to environmental resources;
Malta as Arab States.
• Centralization of authority at the national level;
• Service inequalities between rural and urban regions;
• Lack of reliable databases;
• Deficit in trained personnel;
• Lack of public awareness;
• Narrow venues for public participation in decision making; and
• Absence of financial incentives and effective cost recovery
mechanisms.
With regards to industrial development, the current trends in the Arab
Region fall within two distinct categories: that of the oil-rich states such as
the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) counties, and that of the less affluent
Arab nations that rely heavily on the service and agricultural sectors as a
backbone of their economy. Accordingly, this trend is reflected in waste/
material management in the Arab World.
1. The relatively modern industries in the GCC countries depend
primarily on oil and gas reserves for their economic growth. With
22 percent of the global oil production coming from the region, the
economies of these countries are primarily driven by the petroleum
sector. This may partly explain why they are among the highest
energy users in the world. Other popular industrial activities include
the manufacturing of petrochemicals, fertilizers, aluminum, iron and
steel, and cement, with some diversification into the engineering and
construction industries.
The large scale of the industries of GCC countries leads to severe
environmental problems, with major concern such as persistent
organic pollutants, CO2 7 emissions, toxic industrial discharges, as
well as, vast quantities of construction and demolition debris. In
fact, the estimated per capita generation of hazardous waste is 2-8
times greater than that of the United States – in the range of 16-28
7 The region is also a large contributor (in per kg/year.
capita terms) to global emissions of carbon
dioxide. 2. Countries with less affluent economies such as Jordan, Lebanon,
Syria, West Bank/Gaza and Yemen, employ labor-intensive and
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12. small to medium scale industries that are typically characterized by
an absence of effective monitoring and compliance with national or
international standards. Common industries include that of mining,
textiles, metal finishing and food processing.
Due to their inadequate infrastructure and serious debt problems, these
countries can seldom allocate sufficient funds for industrial modernization
and for pollution enforcement and control. The situation is aggravated by the
substantial government subsidies on natural resources (water, energy and raw
materials), as well as the public nature of the polluting enterprises.
A brief review of the waste resource practices implemented in some
Arab cities is presented in Table 1. It can be noted that landfilling is the practice
preferred by the majority of Arab countries. Nevertheless, some countries,
especially the wealthier Arab states, are tending to incinerate a portion of their
waste stream.
Table 1. Waste Practices in Select Arab Cities (Asfari, 2002; Asfari et al., 2002)
CITY LANDFILLING INCINERATION COMPOSTING RECYCLING
Aden, Yemen Y N N P
Aleppo, Syria Y N N P
Amman, Jordan Y P N P
Bahrain, Bahrain Y P N P
Cairo, Egypt Y P P P
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Kuwait, Kuwait Y P P P
Riyadh, KSA Y P P P
Tunis, Tunisia Y N P P
Y: Practiced N: Not Practiced P: Partially Practiced
3.2 MATERIAL MANAGEMENT IN INDUSTRIALIZED ARAB NATIONS
3.2.1 Waste Management in Industrialized Arab Nations
The recent substantial population growth in the GCC countries has lead
to vast urbanization and increased demand for urban services, including waste
and resource management. The region is also characterized by high incomes
and consumption patterns, in addition fluctuations in the expatriate population,
resulting in changes to the quantity and quality of generated urban waste
(Alhoumoud et al., 2004). The composition of waste in the GCC countries
has become similar to that of industrialized Western countries. In the UAE the
percentage of plastic in the domestic waste stream has risen up to 20%, while
organic waste percentage went down to around 20% (compared to 70% in the
non-industrialized Arab countries). This has complicated the waste treatment
process and increased its cost.
Due to their economic boom over the last twenty years, waste
generation in the high-income Arab countries is increasing at an alarming rate
as well. The domestic per capita waste generation rate is above 1 kg/day,
with UAE having the highest rate in the World (4 kg/day), and the trend is
for it to continue to increase. This is costing dearly in both monetary terms
and environmental costs. Nearly all of the GCC countries dispose of their
waste resources in landfills, which are more like dumps than modern landfills.
Although municipalities have tried composting, a large number of plants were
not operated successfully (Alhoumoud et al, 2004).
Putting waste into landfills is absurd and impractical, both economically
and environmentally. Although these countries have a lot of space to dump
garbage, their landfills are filling up rapidly and there is evidence that their
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13. waste is becoming more hazardous. UAE is predicted to run out of landfill
space in just 10 years. While it is generally expected that no leachate will be
generated in arid climate landfills, considerable quantities have been formed at
these sites, primarily due to the improper disposal of liquid and sludge wastes
(Al-Yaqout 2003). Landfills that leak toxic liquids into surrounding water have
been linked to increased cancer rates (Grifith, 1989).
Although waste recycling has increased, it remains limited in these
countries. The UAE has only 1.4% recycling rate, but is aiming to reach 20%
in the coming 3 to 4 years. The only comprehensive form of recycling in the
GCC has been in the case of paper, cartons, metal and cans. Material recovery
should be further promoted in the region, especially in view of its potential
applications in the fast-growing construction sector. However, examples of
successful recovery attempts include the thriving industry of metal recovery
plants from waste generated by metal smelters. Also, in Saudi Arabia, the
Islamic Relief Fund successfully promoted recycling schemes for aluminum
cans, which are exported to Bahrain. In other Gulf countries, used car
batteries are exported to India and Indonesia and used engine oil is collected
and recycled.
Nevertheless, the main problem that has not been realized or addressed
yet in industrialized Arab states is the consumption pattern, and the contribution
to the stress on global natural resources.
3.2.2 Zero Waste Application in Industrialized Arab Nations
With the goal of diversifying their economy by creating an
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industrialized business boom, material management is the least concern of
the wealthier Arab Nations. Although these countries communicate the value
of environmental sustainability, life-cycle analysis of products is non-existent.
Consumption, being viewed as a healthy business indicator, is encouraged to
increase in a non-sustainable manner. Some GCC countries do not have taxes
on products, nor charge consumers or producers for their waste management.
There is no attempt by these countries to control the quantity or quality of
the waste produced. On the contrary, they have focused their waste treatment
strategy on end-of-pipe and capital intensive technologies that lead to further
environmental damage and resource depletion.
With the more complex waste stream composition and a high-consumer
society, it will be more difficult to implement Zero Waste in these states. The
recent attempts of the GCC countries towards sustainability still lacks enough
drive to make the required shift from end-of-pipe controls a Zero Waste
Strategy. Thereby lies the challenge of these countries - to transform their
industrial and consumption patterns to become less toxic and less resource
intensive.
3.3 MATERIAL MANAGEMENT IN NON-INDUSTRIALIZED ARAB NATIONS
3.3.1 Waste Management in Non-Industrialized Arab Nations
In the less affluent countries, such as those in the Maghreb and
Levantine sub-regions8, over 50 percent of the region’s 160 million inhabitants
abide in urban areas that have difficulty meeting the basic service needs of
their population. The situation is amplified by a serious lack in resources,
8 Countries included are Lebanon, Syria, Egypt,
Jordan, West Bank/Gaza, Tunisia, Algeria and both human and financial, dedicated to waste and material management.
Morocco Enforcement and control agencies, in contrast to the more affluent nations,
do not have the manpower and know-how to regulate and monitor polluting
industries.
Although non-industrialized Arab countries have little resources
available for waste management, the quantity and quality of generated waste
make it easier for these countries to implement Zero Waste principles than for
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14. Industrialized Arab Nations. Due to lower incomes and lifestyles, organic waste
comprises by far the highest proportion of the waste stream, ranging from 55 - 70
percent of household waste by weight. The per capita domestic waste generation
rates in all non-industrialized Arab countries are less than 1 kg/day. Nevertheless,
a World Bank study concluded that a 44 percent increase in the generated of
waste resources was expected by 2010 when compared to the 1998 values in these
countries (METAP, 2003).
The most common methods of treating or processing wastes in the service-
based non-industrialized Arab countries are composting and recycling. However,
their experience in composting has been generally negative due to the absence
of mandatory source segregation. This leads to higher operation costs, reduced
product quality as well as diminished profits. Recycling is mostly undertaken by the
informal sector, such as the famous ‘zabaleen’ of Egypt. In Lebanon, for example,
the informal sector played a tremendous role in the collection of metals from the
construction and demolition debris generated by the Israeli bombardment in the
July06 War. Innovators such as Tunisia and Algeria developed a recycling system
that forces packaging producers and importers to contribute to a recycling fund – an
effort in line with the Zero Waste concept and Extended Producer Responsibility.
Waste resources in the less affluent countries are disposed of either directly
into the environment or into land disposal facilities that are either uncontrolled or
semi-controlled9. Open dumping and burning are common practices in rural areas
and even when disposal facilities are available. As a consequence, severe health and
9 Few disposal sites in the region meet ac- environmental implications abound. The region’s dumps generate high levels of
cepted international standards.
methane gas due to the significant portion of organic waste in the waste stream.
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The non-segregation of hazardous wastes such as batteries and cathode ray tubes,
contaminate the region’s groundwater aquifers with toxic heavy metals. Open
burning and outdated incinerators, even when fitted with pollution control devices,
still release greenhouse gases, heavy metals, particulates, cancer causing dioxins and
hazardous ash. Incineration of solid waste has been undertaken in some countries,
but has been found to be expensive and strongly opposed by the public.
3.3.2 Zero Waste Application in Non-Industrialized Arab Nations
With basic consumption patterns, non-industrialized Arab countries generate
less hazardous waste that is, in both quantity and nature, than that of the more
affluent nations. Therefore, their challenge lies not in modifying the composition
of the waste stream, but in maintaining the current composition and preventing the
trend followed by other countries of increased consumption.
By putting the right incentives within their frameworks, waste can be redefined
as a resource not to be buried or burned but to be recovered. Such incentives could
be lowering tariffs for cleaner waste-management technologies, such as composting
and resource recovery facilities, that generate jobs and provide raw material for
agriculture and local industry.
Some waste management projects based on composting and material recovery
in small rural communities have been able to recycle up to 95% of the waste
generated.
Another advantage of Zero Waste application in poor countries is the fact
that Zero Waste is the cheapest solution, generates the most jobs, and doesn’t
require huge capital. Nevertheless, it should be noted that the most crucial issue
in less affluent Arab states is the lack of law of enforcement. Knowing that Zero
Waste is based on policy regulations to control material flow, special effort should
be put into legislation development and enforcement.
Section 2.4, on Implementing a Zero Waste Strategy, described the general
measures and tools to apply the Zero Waste concept, such as setting zero waste
targets, applying EPR, providing incentives, developing the resource recovery
industry, banning incineration and phasing out landfilling, as well as providing
venues for public participation. However, additional measures specific to the Arab
world include:
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15. 4.0
FORMING A ZERO WASTE BODY
Achieving 4.1 Most Arab states rely on their central environmental authorities to
manage their waste resources. However, these entities are generally under-
Zero Waste staffed, under-funded, and ill-equipped to carry the duties associated with
developing and administering a Zero Waste strategy. Therefore, a designated
in the body, i.e. a Zero Waste committee, council, or agency, needs to be dedicated to
oversee the adoption and implementation of such a strategy.
Arab World This overseeing body would be responsible for:
• establishing zero waste targets based on the country’s existing waste
resource situation and limitations,
• applying EPR principles and incentives,
• providing fiscal and administrative incentives to develop the resource
recovery industry and eventually phase out disposal,
• consulting the public and launching awareness campaigns,
• monitoring and re-evaluating the success of their efforts, and
• updating the zero waste strategy periodically.
LEGISLATION
4.2 The establishment and role of the Zero Waste committee should be
supported through the countrie’s national legislative frameworks. Legislation is
the invisible link that integrates all stakeholders within a Zero Waste framework
and motivates effective results. By including the Zero Waste principles in
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legislation and calling for a Zero Waste body, legislation can allow for the
realization of the following:
• Establishment of a Zero Waste authority,
• Development of a Zero Waste strategy, that is periodically evaluated
and updated by the authority,
• Fiscal and non-fiscal incentives,
• Monitoring and reporting on the implementation of Zero Waste,
• National and local Zero Waste awareness programs,
• Research & development grants.
FUNDING
4.3 Since the long-term savings and economic benefits from a Zero Waste
strategy eventually outweigh the investment by far, it is essential to secure
continuous funds to ensure success. It is important to note that a Zero Waste
strategy costs less than incineration, but the difference is that incineration will
require an initial large capital cost, while Zero Waste will require a continuous
flow of funds for implementing the strategy. Depending on the country, funds
may pose a crucial bottleneck to adopting and applying the strategy. In the case
of the more affluent Arab nations, funds are not a hindrance. However in the
less affluent countries, funding can be the single most contributing factor to the
failure of Zero Waste.
In addition to the traditional funding mechanisms of governments, the
Zero Waste authority can be funded through several self-sustaining measures
which can be included within its plan . Such measures may include a packaging
levy, a landfilling levy, excise taxes on certain imported materials to be used for
packaging, as well as some of the incentives mentioned in prior sections of this
report.
Al-Yaqout A.Assessment and Analysis of Industrial Liquid Waste and Sludge
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16. 5.0 References
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