News from Islands
“Plastic-free Cape Verde” initiative launched on Sal and in Praia
The Plastic-Free Cape Verde campaign was launched simultaneously in Praia and on Sal yesterday, January 27, by the Environmental Defense and Development Association (ADAD). The project is tantamount to a “declaration of war” against the plastic bags used everywhere in the country and which ended up polluting the sea and getting caught in trees, degrading the Cape Verdean landscape and producing toxic materials that are harmful to health.
The intention of the campaign is to get Cape Verde to replace plastic with reusable materials or paper bags, materials that are more readily degradable in nature – plastic takes some 400 years to decompose.
Sal mayor Jorge Figueiredo spoke from the island by way of video conference, saying that, in his opinion, plastic should be abolished from the island and from the country. “If we really can eliminate this material, it would be very good. We know what plastic does to nature, in terms of environmental degradation, and we know the harm it can do to the tourism sector,” he stressed.
What’s more, said Figueiredo, with a reduction in the production and importation of plastic, Cape Verde will also be promoting more business opportunities. “If we manage to eliminate plastic and introduce traditional cloth bags – when I was little, we used to use cloth bags to buy bread, for example – we will be giving more opportunities to sectors such as handicrafts. In addition, I believe that if we have a plastic-free island we’ll receive many more visitors,” said the Sal mayor.
Figueiredo highlighted the fact that Sal is one of the first islands to embrace the project, the implementation of which is eventually expected to lead to the prohibition of the importation of plastic into the country. “The beginning of this process should take place immediately and in coordination with the customs department. Plastic is used to package practically everything. We have to drastically raise ecological taxes and legally state that plastic may not enter the country. In this way, we can reduce pollution in Cape Verde by as much as 80%,” predicted Figueiredo.
According to the mayor, plastic represents some 11% of all domestic trash produced on Sal. “The worst part is that some of this trash does not end up in the dump. It goes into the sea, into barren plots of land. We have veritable Christmas trees of plastic bags. And that’s where the problem lies. Even the plastic that goes to the dump ends up being bad for the environment, because, as we know, plastic is made out of petroleum and takes 400 years to decompose in nature. Until then, it continues to produce heavy metals that destroy and poison the soil, producing toxic fumes.”
