Where does your waste go?

Where does smoke go when we burn waste, both physical and mental waste? Which way does the remaining ash take? What is the composition of the ash anyway,-noxious, and the chemistry of the smoke,-toxic? Like cows that defecate in grass they eat, humans in Kampala continue to poison their environments and hope to get away with it. Ignorance is indeed bliss but it won’t protect us from the consequence of our irresponsible actions. It is evil to burn mixed waste and homicidal to burn plastic waste in the open. All smoke, gasses, negative energy, soluble elements in the ashes etc that we irresponsibly generate and recklessly damp as we handle waste will eventually end up in our bodies. This stuff will characterize our later days with chronic illnesses like cancer, amnesia and shame.

In Kampala, where highly educated and able bodied men are struggling to afford the basics of life, a call to manage waste feels like a burden. The pressure to run the race of life is already too much and a decision to be responsible about one’s waste might be seen as distressing. OTT waste is enough stress already. But we can’t wish away the fact that our air is getting polluted very fast, our water is not safe for our consumption and strife is increasing in our societies. We are seeing more cancer deaths than ever before and the trend is scary. The story started with Bwaise yams being infected with lead and we stopped eating yams. We forgot that the water that was delivering the lead to Bwaise yams was coming from our waste upstream and heading to Lake Victoria. We have since increased in population and waste concentration. What will you do when the lead concentrations in Lake victoria water reach toxic levels? Then there is this ethics kryptonite kind of waste where people stay on jobs and partnerships because of the opportunities the jobs/partnerships present for them to be corrupt and not that they desire to create real value for sustainability of the system. There is a lot of waste at home, on the road, in offices, churches, hospitals, universities and the parliament.

It takes courage to start thinking about your waste. I want to encourage you to pay attention to your waste. I used to think I needed others to be right. I now know I don’t and I am enough. I used to think “kujenga ni kubomoa”. I now know its about legitimacy, then effective planning and responsible implementation/construction. I now target zero waste whenever I am in charge of a construction site.

If each one of us decides to act on waste, we shall stop disease, age gracefully, and become richer at a manageable cost. We can eat some and still have our cake. Reduce your waste (audit your activities and replace those that generate waste), Reuse (avoid disposables), Recycle (ask your waste collector to provide bins for different waste and ensure that recyclable waste is taken for recycling), and Recover (the banana pilings can be used as manure in your vegetable garden of feeding goats). Be brave and think about your waste. If we really want to grow old in our city, we must individually consider how we are generating and managing our waste.

Of course, at ecoconcrete, we are all about durable and affordable concrete blocks, pavers, precast concrete, concrete facades, and high strength concrete. In fact we help you manage your concreting works so that you are sure of the quality, durability and costs. Follow us at facebook; https://web.facebook.com/ecoconcreteUG/?ref=bookmarks