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Tina Musonza Herald Correspondent

The Environment Management Agency (EMA) has engaged community-based organisations to find households ready to separate waste to make it easier for recycling companies to collect garbage.

During the EMA awareness campaign held recently at Newlands shopping centre in Harare, they were speaking about the initiatives of community-based organisations driven by Harare residents from all corners of the city which facilitate and encourage people to separate waste into different categories.

Speaking during the launch of the awareness campaign, EMA Harare provincial manager Mr Leon Mutungamiri said besides helping the Harare City Council to conduct effective waste collection on time, EMA wants to encourage Harare residents to separate waste in their households.

“We are encouraging residents to separate waste so that they reduce volumes of waste. We are going to have recyclable waste materials on one hand and the general waste.

“Harare City Council have got a waste schedule and they also shared with us the schedule but the challenge is that they are not adhering to the waste collection timetable. Our plea to the City of Harare is that they adhere to the waste collection schedule they have.

They have embarked on the two-week  cycle of collections. After assessing challenges which revolved around waste collection and disposal in Harare, he encouraged residents to separate waste such as solid plastics, paper, bottles, canes, cardboard boxes and food left overs correctly to reduce volumes of waste. He said this would ease waste collection for the City of Harare and recycling companies such as Zimbabwe Sunshine Group, Recycle Today, PetrecoZim and others.

He said that the separation of waste has vast potential in starting recycling in homes as well where residents would make use of empty bottles as containers and other uses.

In her remarks, Cranborne resident Mrs Agnes Chikerema applauded EMA for the thwarted efforts to protect the environment.

“We are happy that EMA is spreading awareness, they are protecting us as well as the environment. This awareness is very important because people need to know the consequences of damaging the environment we live in,” she said

Another Harare resident, Mr Blessed Bandawa said that the awareness was remarkable in showcasing how EMA is committed to revamp the environment.

“We are happy that EMA have started the initiatives to do with environment protection but we hope they will spread awareness across the country especially in ghettos.

Mr Mutungamiri said the plan was to educate people about keeping the environment across the country.