The Plastic Challenge

12 Jul 2021 CW Team

Every year, about 11 million tonne of plastic waste ends up in our oceans and make up 80 per cent of all marine debris from surface waters to deep-sea sediments. That’s the equivalent of setting five garbage bags full of trash on every foot of coastline around the world!

Recycling and reuse of plastic products, and support for research and innovation to develop new products to replace single-use plastics are necessary to prevent and reduce plastic pollution.

Recognising the need to address the challenge of marine plastic pollution, Geocycle – the global waste management arm of LafargeHolcim – is piloting in India a smart and non-invasive technology to remove plastics from canals before they reach the oceans. LafargeHolcim is the parent company of Ambuja Cements and ACC, the two major cement producing companies in India. Geocycle India is the inhouse waste management arm of Ambuja and ACC; it is a leading provider of industrial, agricultural, municipal and plastic waste management services.

Geocycle is implementing the innovative ‘bubble curtain’ technology for the first time in India to stop plastic from entering the river Yamuna. The Geocycle Bubble Barrier (GBB) has been established on the Mantola Canal of Agra City in Uttar Pradesh, which carries 40 per cent of the storm and wastewater of Agra city. Moumita Chakraborty, Head, Geocycle Asia, shares more on the technology and its implementation.

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- SERAPHINA D’SOUZA

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