Doha, Qatar – March 2017: The local community, downstream industries, schools and universities in Qatar recently united on Al-Wakra Beach as a completion for the regional Waste Free Environment (WFE) cleanup campaign. The WFE campaign is an environmental awareness and anti-litter campaign Initiated by the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA). The annual campaign aims to tackle some of the challenges associated with plastic litter.
The campaign started with several awareness activities with schools, colleges and universities. Schools and universities were visited by our ambassadors to deliver an awareness-raising presentation aimed to introduce the importance of protecting the environment and how to preserve it. In cooperation with the RAF Foundation, we were able to present the awareness for 18 local and private schools.
In addition, the activities of the campaign continued to include several competitions that students from different schools participated in, environmental art work and to present ideas on how to protect the environment. The main message from these activities was to think about the huge amount of waste we dump every day, while it can be reused in several areas.
Discussing the aim of the campaign, Dr. Abdulwahab Al-Sadoun, Secretary General of the GPCA, said: “Our industry is the second largest manufacturing industry in this region and the products the chemical industry produces here in the Arabian Gulf, plastics in particular, contribute significantly to our quality of life, resource preservation and innovation. These products should be responsibly disposed of, either via recycling or energy recovery. GPCA’s educational campaign WFE provides an excellent opportunity to work alongside the community to show that littering is not acceptable and help spread knowledge about eco-efficient waste management in general,”
Dr. Mohammed Yousef Al-Mulla, Managing Director & CEO of Qatar Petrochemical Company (QAPCO), a pioneer in petrochemical production in the Middle East and WFE local liaison commented on the initiative by saying: “Qatar will enter a new era in waste recycling and reuse and It is our role as responsible and accountable corporate citizens and as individuals to take waste disposal seriously, because we are all part of the change. Together, by taking action, we can all make a difference in shaping a sustainable future.”
Dr. Al-Mulla extended his appreciation to all the participants who contributed to cleaning Al-Wakra beach and he added, “The cleanup campaign in Qatar was a real success because all the stakeholders united and were mobilized towards the same goal: raising awareness about our accountability in protecting the environment among the youth is one of the first steps towards shaping a sustainable and clean future.”
Mr. Abdulrahman Ali Al-Abdulla, CEO of Muntajat (Qatar Chemical and Petrochemical Marketing and Distribution Company Q.J.S.C), and local liaison of the WFE, commented: “The Waste Free Environment day has become among Qatar’s most important initiatives for raising awareness on responsible environmental behavior. Muntajat is proud to be supporting such a noble initiative for the fourth year in a row. We believe that by educating and engaging the upcoming generations on the importance of clean up and recycling we are able to shape their behavior to help maintain and preserve our environment and the beauty of our beloved nation.”
Mr. Saad Rashed Al-Muhannadi, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Qatar Chemical Company Ltd. (Q-Chem) local liaison of the WFE confirmed: “The primary goal of the campaign was to increase understanding of the waste-free environment. Together, we succeeded to achieve that objective and inspire others, especially the youth to take further steps to promote environmental sustainability. Environmental preservation is a collective responsibility and we’re happy that we were able to share that value”.
Eng. Mohamed Abdul-Rahman Hijji, General Manager of Qatar Plastic Products Company W.L.L. a campaign partner commented “as our commitment should be to leave our environment in better shape than when we found it”. Sustaining each small action for the environment and continuously educating our citizenry, is a lifelong learning process that leads to an informed and involved community. Waste Free Environment campaign is one vital action that will help ensure an environmentally sound and economically prosperous future for this generation and generations to come.
Twyla is the official recycling partner of plastic materials collected during the campaign, and the remaining materials are recycled in cooperation with Al-Wakra Municipality.
Al-Wakra Beach was chosen in the last day of the campaign because of its proximity to Mesaieed Industrial City, the home of most of the downstream producing industries in Qatar. Over 1,000 students participated in re-use of plastics workshops and attending the awareness presentation. In addition to their great contribution in cleaning the beach which aimed to promote best practices on optimal methods of waste disposal, environmental protection and reuse of plastics.
Many institutions joined the WFE campaign in line with efforts to shape a sustainable future for the local community. The initiative was strongly supported by Al-Wakra Municipality , Lekhwiya Security Forces, The Ministry of Education and Higher Education, The Friends of the Environment Centre, Education Above All, RAF, The Scout and Guide Association of Qatar, Al-Arabi Sports Club , Primary Healthcare Corporation and Al-Wakra Hospital are also engaging in the initiative and offering their valued assistance.
Amwaj, ExxonMobil, Total, Qatar Wooden Products Co. WLL (QWPC), Qatar University, College of North Atlantic-Qatar, The Community College of Qatar and TEXAS A&M University have likewise offered their upmost support.
Apart from Muntajat, QAPCO, Q-chem and QPPC Mesaieed, Industrial City’s other main downstream entities, such as Qatar Fertilizer Company (QAFCO), Qatar Fuel Additives Company (QAFAC), Qatar Vinyl Company (QVC), Qatar Industrial Manufacturing Company (QIMC), and Qatofin Company Limited as well as Qatalum and Qatar Steel also played a pivotal role in the cleanup drive.
The schools involved in the presentation session and the beach camp included Doha British School-Al-Wakra, Next Generation Kindergarten (Ain Khalid Campus ), Next Generation Kindergarten (Nuaija Campus), Philippine Private International School, The Stafford International Sri Lankan School, Premier International School, Global Academy International School, Abdulrahman Bin Jassim School, Mesaieed International School, Doha Preparatory School, Hamza Bin Abdulmottalib Preparatory School, Khalid Bin Ahmed Preparatory School for Boys, Salah Eddin Independent Preparatory School, Osama Bin Zaid Preparatory School, Al-Ahnaf Bin Qais School, Ibn Khaldun School, Simaisma School, Abdulla Al-Misnad School.
The WFE witnessed a sharp rise in the number of volunteers, schools, universities, governmental agencies and supporting organizations that participated in the cleanup drive in Al-Wakra Beach. All the participants expressed their strong commitment to preserve the environment and were mobilized towards one goal: Shaping a sustainable future for our planet.