War on Plastic in Zambia

It's #WorldEnvironmentDay2023 today.

East Africa is leading the war on plastic waste, showing the rest of the continent that it is possible. When I lived in Uganda, an act banning plastic bags was being enforced. If found in violation, the penalty was US$540. Supermarkets quickly introduced paper and eco bags. All of us in the ecosystem started complying.

On my recent visit to Kenya, on the plane, we were reminded to leave any pieces of plastic at the airport or risk a fine of up to US$1000. Kenya has one of the strictest laws on plastic. People caught manufacturing or using plastic bags face up to four years in jail or a fine of up to $40,000.

However, here in Zambia, there's zero education on the harm plastic waste causes. From shopping bags to packaging things like drinks and bottled water, the amount of plastic we use is alarming. Time and again, I've seen shoppers demand extra shopping bags when they already have a trolley full of them. Speaking of supermarkets, there are some inroads because bags attract a small fee, which isn't small if you repeatedly buy these bags. They're profiting off of plastic waste rather than offering long-term solutions like consistently investing in cheaper and eco-friendly bags. Perhaps, this should be a government directive. Can someone whisper to Hon. Garry Nkombo?

The smart people at UN Environment Programme have been telling us plastic pollution is altering habitats and natural processes, reducing ecosystems’ ability to adapt to climate change, and directly affecting millions of people’s livelihoods, food production capabilities and social well-being. Could this explain why we don't consistently have running water in homes, can't grow enough, tilapia is no longer as available as it used to be and perhaps why this June feels like October? No expert here, just exploring the bigger picture. What do you think?

Of course, there's work in progress on raising awareness and shifting policy, but more needs to be done. Many of us are damaging the environment out of ignorance. There must be a lot of people in Zambia who sort their garbage but in my circle, only a friend and I separate plastic from other waste. When I encourage my family and friends to do it, I'm told "Ni vaku ba zungu ivo" (those are activities for the West). Even with my commitment, I've seen my garbage collector, mix everything up when he thinks I'm not looking. It took me nearly a year to convince my household to start sorting. I suspect they now only do it for me not because they feel it is their contribution to preserving the environment.

As if this isn't enough, I still don't know where to take my sorted trash - particularly plastic, metal and glass. So at least once a month, I haul my hard garbage to a shopping mall and sneakily, dump it in their labelled bins. I'm usually scared that security will catch me one day. Imagine explaining myself to them would be quite interesting if not scary. For plastic water bottles (I'm gravitating to glass bottles), I met a guy who walks around neighbourhoods, checking drainages and bins for them. He now comes by once a month, collects and resells them. Not sure if it's to the mineral water producers or the drinking water entrepreneurs on the streets. I bet the other plastic wrappings end up in the Chingwere landfill.

All this to say that, can the government and civil society start teaching us about the danger of plastic pollution, and what we should be doing to be part of the solution. Right now, we're all making the problem worse.

How're you protecting the environment??