Partnership boosts innovative recycling villages

In celebration of World Environment Day, a day that encourages citizen-action to improve our environment, Woolworths has announced a partnership aimed at increasing recycling rates in South Africa.  The new initiative is a trial that will upgrade two existing WILDLANDS recycling villages and open three additional recycling villages in popular KwaZulu-Natal shopping centres where there are Woolworths’ stores.  WILDLANDS recycling villages, which are at the forefront of recycling and the recycling circular economy in South Africa, are part of a well-established WILDTRUST programme.  Other partners include Dow, Nedbank and YES (Youth Employment Service).

Feroz Koor, Woolworths Holdings Group Head of Sustainability, says, “Last year on World Environment Day, we announced our ambitious ZERO packaging waste to landfill commitments.  While we are working to phase out single-use plastics and make all our packaging recyclable or reusable by 2022, we also want to make it as easy as possible for our customers to efficiently recycle. Their support of very accessible, well-run WILDLANDS recycling villages is not just good for the environment but the village concept also supports viable youth employment while connecting local schools and community-based waste-preneurs.”

The Woolworths’ sponsorship includes upgrades to existing WILDLANDS recycling villages at the Hayfields Mall in Pietermaritzburg and The Quarry Centre in Hilton, and will start with the establishment of a new recycling village at Watercrest Mall in Waterfall, Durban, with two more to follow.  The investment covers not just upgrades to infrastructure but vital public messaging to raise awareness of what substrates are recyclable.

Andrew Venter Chief Executive Officer of the WILDTRUST says, “It is a privilege for WILDLANDS to be partnering with Woolworths on their ZERO waste to landfill journey.  Our vision of a sustainable future for all is well-aligned to Woolworths’ strategy, ensuring that customers are offered more convenient options for preventing their waste from going to landfill.  With Woolworths ability to reach a large number of consumers with quality products and credible messaging, and our recycling expertise, our hope is that together we will encourage more South Africans to see that there is an alternative for their waste.  If we work alongside each other we can start to prevent the devastating impact that we now see along our coastlines and in all other ecosystems.”

WILDOCEANS CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR MARINE CONSERVATION

The ocean, earth’s largest habitat, covers 70 percent of the planet’s surface and generates 50 percent of our oxygen. The conservation of such a habitat is crucial. WILDOCEANS, a programme of the WILDTRUST, is very excited to announce that the Blue Action Fund (BAF) have invested in a four-year project set to be carried out by WILDOCEANS and partners, supporting marine conservation and livelihoods in South Africa and Mozambique. BAF, based in Germany, is a conservation trust fund dedicated to supporting Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and coastal waters of Africa, Latin America and Asia.

Protection of the oceans in the African region is lagging far behind most other parts of the world both in terms of contributing to global targets for the percentage within MPAs, as well as the effectiveness of management of these areas. Only 2.3% of Mozambique’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is formally protected in gazetted legislation, and South Africa now has 5% of its EEZ protected, up from 0.4%.

Both countries are working to expand marine spatial protection and to improve the management effectiveness of their MPA networks under extremely tough capacity limits, budget constraints and in the face of significant economic interest in their ocean resources. Both countries are currently facing escalating marine hydrocarbon and mineral resources extractive pressure, led by large international companies that promise sustainable development and significant investment into developing country’s economies. These new uses of the ocean space come on the heels of foreign industrial fishing, including tuna fishing and illegal fisheries Compounding existing over-fishing challenges and significant climate change impacts such as drought and disasters caused by extreme weather events, these stressors threaten to further compromise food security and resilience in the region.

This initiative will support a regional network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) with focused efforts on two important and ecologically connected marine biodiversity hotspots: the iSimangaliso Wetland Park World Heritage Site in South Africa and the Vamizi-Quifuki-Metundo Island Complex in Mozambique. Dr Jean Harris, executive director of WILDOCEANS said “This project comes at a very important time for both countries, when threats to our ocean spaces are at a peak and there are not enough mechanisms in place to ensure their protection. There is a rising global voice for ocean protection and we are really appreciative that the Blue Action Fund recognises the need for investment in the South West Indian Ocean region.” The project aims to achieve increased protection and strengthened management of these sites, while improving the livelihoods of adjacent communities and the sustainability of fisheries. “We are very proud to be working with Africa Foundation through their Oceans without Borders collaboration with andBeyond, with Universidade Lúrio in Mozambique, and in South Africa with Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, iSimangaliso Wetland Park and on this important project”, said Harris.”

Executive Director of the Blue Action Fund, Markus Knigge said, “Millions of people, including vulnerable communities in coastal areas, rely on healthy oceans. We are looking forward to seeing WILDOCEANS and its partners to support the establishment and management of a representative and effective regional network of connected Marine Protected Areas, conserving marine ecosystems and supporting sustainable livelihoods depending on them.”

South Africa is privileged to be the custodians of one of the longest coastlines in the world. WILDOCEANS values the assistance from the Blue Action Fund and its support for the many marine conservation efforts being made all over the world. Follow us on our social media platforms (@WILDOCEANSSA and @oceanimpact) to keep up with the work we will be doing through the Blue Action Fund.

A hub of waste innovations and solutions launched in KwaZulu-Natal

On the 11th of June a crowd gathered at the WILDLANDS Recycling Depot in Midmar, Howick (KwaZulu-Natal) to officially launch WISH – Waste, Innovation & Solutions Hub. WISH has been enabled by Dow, who have made a global commitment to address plastic pollution, and ensure that plastic waste does not enter our environment, but is treated as too valuable to be lost to waste. WISH is also a result of a partnership with ‘The Pyrolysis Group’ in Association with USE-IT, a Durban based recycling non-profit.

Speaking at the WISH launch, WILDLANDS Recycling Manager Hanno Langenhoven said: “I am excited and privileged to be part of a journey that looks at real solutions to the waste problem. If we fail to transcend the focus on recycling and come up with value-add solutions, we will continue to struggle with the ever-increasing waste problem, as well as consequential negative environmental impacts and health issues.”

The WISH launch uncovered an extra-ordinary brick machine, glass crusher and pyrolysis machine.

The brick machine is a South African developed solution that builds on work of this kind globally. The ‘green brick’ that this machine produces – uses no water, no cement and no sand in its production – a world first. The 14kg building brick is made from 30% plastic and 70% glass, weighs less than a normal building brick and is much stronger. The machine can produce 200 building blocks per day, ultimately diverting 9.8kgs of glass and 4.2kgs of plastic per block from landfill daily.

“The long-term vision is to place brick plants wherever the plastic problem persists, especially in communities with a lack of, or poor, service delivery. In the medium term we hope to have 4 brick machines in operation at our Midmar facility, with a focus on providing bricks for use in WILDLANDS’ community development projects, as well as supplying surrounding communities,” said Langenhoven.

“A setup like this becomes economically viable and self-sustainable when industry take responsibility for the packaging they put into the market,” said Langenhoven. “We are excited to have partnered with local confectionary manufacturer, Wedgewood Crafted Confectionery, who are doing just this, becoming plastic neutral and contributing an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) fee for every kg of plastic that it uses in its operations and packaging.”

“The glass crushing machine allows us to crush glass on site and separate it into 4 different grades,” said Langenhoven. “Some of the glass goes into our bricks and we are currently exploring other potential markets. Different grades of glass have different applications, from use in golf course sand bunkers and sand blasting, to chemical and water filtration.”

Pyrolysis, the breaking down of something using fire (pyro + lysis) is a very well-known solution worldwide. However, the combination of a small-scale reactor and a small-scale refinery to turn plastic into a fuel, is a world first. “We have successfully demonstrated that we can turn polypropylene into plastic fuel and that it can be used to power a diesel vehicle,” said Langenhoven.

“By joining forces with partners such as WILDLANDS who are already making inroads in tackling poor waste management, we are changing the conversation around plastics and their value for society,” said Javier Constante, Commercial Vice President, Packaging and Specialty Plastics Business EMEA at Dow. “Even after plastics have fulfilled their initial purpose, they have significant value and should be treated as important resources and recycled whenever possible. Investments like the WISH centre are enabling all partners in the plastics value chain to more towards a circular economy.”

Adwoa Coleman, Dow Africa Sustainability and Advocacy Manager, speaking at the event commented, “Dow is working to ensure a circular economy for plastics and a significant part of that involves innovation in second life solutions for plastic waste. This will drive value for the post-consumer plastic to make it a resource instead of waste. Our partnership with Wildlands is enabling innovations and solutions that will drive this to ensure no more plastics end up in the environment.”

“Making fuel and building material from plastic and other waste sources open doors to exciting opportunities for getting rid of waste as well as empowering and uplifting communities,” concluded Langenhoven.

NPO announces imminent launch of film profiling South Africa’s oceans.

On World Oceans Day, 8 June, WILDOCEANS (a programme of the WILDTRUST – environmental NPO) and Off the Fence, a world class production company, announced the imminent release of their film ‘Our Oceans’.

The film is a journey of discovery on board the conservation research vessel, Angra Pequena. The crew document ground-breaking expeditions on board the vessel and this unique access gives the viewer a window into the world of ocean exploration. The journey focuses on iconic species including the Humpback Whale, the Coelacanth and the Scalloped Hammerhead Shark.

From breaching whales to footage from remote cameras more than 100m below the surface, the viewer is treated to a rich variety of imagery that shows the magic of the ocean in a way very few will ever get to experience first-hand.

South Africans are privileged to be the custodians of one of the longest coastlines in the world and this enables a story full of extraordinary encounters and spectacular cinematography, with the purpose of inspiring love and appreciation for the ocean and positive change.

“We must thank the African Coelacanth Ecosystem Programme (ACEP), the KwaZulu-Natal Film Commission and Off the Fence for making this film possible,” said Producer of ‘Our Oceans’ Lauren van Nijkerk. “It would take an entire day to thank all the cast and crew involved – but a massive blanket thank you must go out to all of them for making a dream of sharing South Africa’s oceans with the world, come true.”

Visit www.ouroceansfilm.com to meet the characters who inspired the film and the crew who captured their stories and brought them to life. The site also offers tips on how you can help save the ocean and make a difference. The hope is that ‘Our Oceans’ will be accepted and feature at several film festivals around the world, so be sure to check the screenings page regularly for screenings near you.

COALITION LAUNCHES ‘OCEAN IMPACT’ TO PROTECT OUR OCEANS

After an exciting “Name the Campaign” social media competition and just in time to amplify the excitement around the gazetting of 20 new Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in South Africa – Ocean iMPAct officially launched last month.

Birthed by a coalition of organisations including WILDOCEANS (a programme of the WILDTRUST), Ocean Unite and WWF-SA, Ocean iMPAct hopes to help advance the protection of the oceans around South Africa within MPAs – part of a second phase of the MPA expansion project, with an overall objective to attain the global MPA target of 10% by 2020 – and pave the way for African states to support a global target of 30% strongly protected by 2030.

“Earlier this year we put out a call to the public to help name this new campaign, which builds on the successful ‘Only This Much’ campaign launched in 2018 when ocean protection was at a pitiful 0.4%,” said Campaign Lead, Lauren van Nijkerk. “The public were asked to submit an upbeat and positive, short, punchy and inspirational name that promotes the value of our oceans, profiles MPAs as our heritage and highlights why we need 10% – and ultimately 30% protection by 2030 for our oceans. A score of passionate and creative ocean advocates submitted their names and ‘Ocean iMPAct’ (with the MPA of ‘impact’ in capital letters) – an adaptation of a name submitted by Varsha Naidu Moodley was chosen.”

On Friday the 24th of May 20 new and expanded Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)announced by South Africa’s cabinet in October 2018 were officially gazetted, increasing protection from 0.4% to 5%.

Dr Jean Harris, WILDOCEANS Executive Director, said that this is a very important step for South Africa, and a credit to all the people who have worked so hard to implement the Cabinet decision to approve 20 new and expanded MPAs. “MPAs are an essential tool for ocean health. They protect the oceans and the resources people depend on from risks such as climate change, over-fishing and mining. We look forward to supporting government to achieve the effective management of these new MPAs, and in working towards South Africa’s commitment to reach the 10% CBD target by 2020. This is a critical moment in our journey towards the 30% ocean protection that science indicates is needed to restore and conserve the oceans.”

The Deputy Director General of the South African Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA), Judy Beaumont, who attended the launch of the project on World Oceans Day last year and gave a keynote address, welcomed the MPA expansion project. At an event in April this year, co-hosted by DEA, held to celebrate the achievement of 5% protection she spoke to the importance of the work to be done now to ensure that the new MPAs are effectively managed and adequately resourced.

The MPA expansion project, supported by Oceans 5, and a partnership between WILDOCEANS, WWF-SA and Ocean Unite, is now moving into its second phase to support the government’s commitment to achieve at least 10% MPA coverage for the waters around South Africa.

“We believe that the ‘Only This Much’ campaign played a significant part, working alongside responsible government institutions and with key civil society organisations, in helping to secure 5% marine protection in Year 1 of the project and aim to play a similar, supportive role this coming year in securing at least 10% in MPAs with the ‘Ocean iMPAct’ campaign,” said van Nijkerk.

Follow us on social media – @oceanimpactsa and join the movement to advance the protection of South Africa’s oceans.