The 23rd annual Clean-Up and Recycle SA Week, between 16 and 21 September, encourages South Africans to host their own clean-ups in the area where they work and live.
The first ever cleanup week started in 1996 in KwaZulu-Natal and was launched by the plastic industry, according to Good Things Guy. Since then, major sectors have joined in to help. These include glass, metal, paper and tetra industries and raw material suppliers, converters, retailers, government, and more.
If you would like to plan an event, it will be listed on the Clean-Up and Recycle SA website. To register your group click here.
Plastics SA the umbrella body representing the entire South African plastics industry, will help any group wanting to host a clean up by teaching the group how to organise an event, how and where to recycle and by donating disposable bags for the clean up.
Speaking to Good Things Guy, Douw Steyn, Sustainability Director of Plastics SA said, “during this week, we all unite our actions around the common goal of removing as much litter as we possibly can from our environment.
“We also aim to teach South Africans how to dispose of their waste in a responsible way by highlighting the importance of recycling materials that can be used to create new products, generate employment and reduce our impact on the environment.”
Friday 20 September, is ‘Recycling Day’ and on Saturday 21 September is International Coastal Clean-Up and Let’s Do It! World Clean-Up.
According to Good Things Guy, in 2018, over 17 million people took part in clean-ups held in 158 countries.
For those who don’t want to organise their own clean-up, join in with organisations, such as The Two Oceans Aquarium, which is hosting a Trash Bash cleanup at Monwabisi Beach on 21 September.
Image source: Unsplash
