The village of Asaloko is leading Ghana in a unique way to fight plastic waste. Residents there collect discarded plastic water sachets. They then exchange these sachets for clean drinking water. This system turns pollution into a valuable commodity.
Mary Asaah, a resident, collects sachets every Saturday. This practice has saved her money on buying water. A local coordinator for a sachet water company stated that 5 tonnes of sachets are collected annually from Asaloko. This program directly benefits the community by providing a needed resource and reducing waste.
Ghana faces a huge plastic waste challenge. The country generates about 840,000 tonnes of plastic waste each year. Less than 10 percent of this plastic is recycled. The rest pollutes the environment. Sachet water is a major part of this waste problem. Many Ghanaians rely on sachets for drinking water due to unreliable pipe systems.
The initiative in Asaloko began with hygiene education. WaterAid Ghana, an NGO, introduced a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) program. Fauzia Aliu, Advocacy, Campaigns and Inclusion manager at WaterAid Ghana, explained that this program changed community behaviour. The focus on hygiene led to environmental awareness. This naturally extended to managing plastic waste instead of burning it.
Community elder Achinges Abeliwine expressed pride in Asaloko's approach. Organic waste is composted for fields. Trees are planted to help the environment. Residents actively clean their community every Saturday. The community wants to present an attractive image to visitors. Elder Abeliwine also acknowledges limitations.
Burning plastic releases harmful particles. These are called PM2.5. Scientists link this air pollution to 35,000 deaths in Ghana yearly. It contributes to diseases like diabetes and cancer. Burning plastic also releases toxic gases. These can build up in the body over time. Women and children often suffer the most from this exposure. They are usually the ones handling household waste.
Dem Dhat, a sachet water company in Balungu, drives Asaloko's recycling economy. They call their system a practical, business-driven solution. It is a response to a problem businesses helped create. Community member Rosina Nsobila views it as a matter of social justice. She wishes more recycling companies would engage with their community.
The community still faces challenges. Some waste like diapers and food wrappers cannot be recycled easily. They need a processing plant to handle this. Such a plant would cost about GHS 224 million. This is according to Zoomlion Ghana, which runs a waste recovery plant. A plant would help Asaloko become almost free of air pollution.
Elder Abeliwine pleaded for help. He asked authorities, private organizations, and NGOs to support them. They need a processing plant for recycling. This would complete their efforts to eliminate pollution.