The eighth edition of EcoWASTE 2022 Exhibition and Forum launched today at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), under the slogan “exploring future opportunities for waste management to achieve circular economy.”The event,organised in strategic partnership with Abu Dhabi Waste Management Center (Tadweer), will continue until 19 January as part of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW).
The event began with an opening speech by His Excellency Dr. Salem KhalfanAl Kaabi, Director General of Tadweer.His Excellency affirmed the importance of the exhibition, which will be providing opportunities for participating investors, innovators, and technology providers to cooperate to find new solutions for sustainable waste management, develop new trade opportunities, enhance partnerships, and discover the latest innovations and expertise.
His Excellency Dr. Salem Khalfan Al Kaabi said: “A group of decision-makers, officials, and major experts in the field of waste management from all over the world have gathered at EcoWASTE. The Exhibition and Forum aims at reviewing the latest trends in the sector, the latest technologies, new and advanced solutions in the field of sustainable waste management, and its investment in various industries. The exhibition and forum is a comprehensive platform for exchanging best practices and experiences and strengthening and building strategic partnerships between the most prominent experts in the field.”
“The Abu Dhabi Waste ManagementCenter (Tadweer) is proud to be participating at the event as a strategic partner. Since its establishment, the Center has been successful in making a major stride in the field of safe and effective waste management, in accordance with the highest international standards. We are pleased to showcase our experiences and achievements in this field with our global counter parts, and to explore the most innovative solutions in the field of waste management and recycling in the region, as well as highlight our contributions to addressing the challenges that face the transformation of waste to energy,” His Excellency added.
Remarkable achievements
Onthe first day of the event, Tadweerhighlightedits most important achievements during 2021, where it contributed to realising its vision for developing a sustainable system for waste management and combating threats to public health in Abu Dhabi.
The Center treated around 11 millions tonnes of medical waste and hazardous waste in the Emirate during 2021, and recycled around 2.9 million tonnes of construction and demolition waste. The Center installed 200 new smart mosquito traps in the Emirate, raising the total number of traps to 640, in addition to reducing the number of disease-carrying pests by 56%.
The Center announced that 80% of the plans for recovery from COVID-19 have been carried out as per its execution plan, carrying out around 95% of the safety and professional health management system, and 96% of the business sustainability management development project. In terms of monitoring, the Center has detected more than 14,000 cases of arbitrary dumping of sewage, and around 25,000 cases of waste transport vehicles leaving the borders of Abu Dhabi, and more than 764,000 cases of authorized entry into official stations.
Big turnout
His Excellency Dr. Salem Khalfan Al Kaabi, Director General of the Abu Dhabi Waste Management Center (Tadweer), along with directors of departments and sections attended the official opening ceremony of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, which was held as part of Expo 2020 Dubai. During the first day of the Exhibition, the Tadweer pavilion saw a bigturn out by visitors who were informed about the most prominent projects carried out by the Center, which is the leading body in charge of integrated waste management in Abu Dhabi. Tadweer plays a pivotal role in realizing the UAE’s circular economy goals by adopting innovative mechanisms and solutions for waste management.
Panel discussions
The first day of EcoWASTE included the waste management solutions forum, in which His Excellency Dr. Salem KhalfanAl Kaabi, Director General of Tadweer, delivered the opening speech. The forum focused on the importance of the event and its targeted goals, as well as reviewing the UAE’s experience in transitioning to circular economy, and the importance of public-private partnerships to keep up with the growing challenges in the waste management sector.
The forum included a series of panels featuring leaders in the sector and representatives of companies who tackled very important topics such as: circular economy, rethinking product manufacturing and packaging strategies; circular economy: enhancing employment opportunities through B Corp certifications; how to use technology to design waste management services; the future of waste management; landfill reduction strategies; the importance of applying approved safety standards in waste management; and other topics.
Global participation
EcoWASTE saw the participation of more than 35 local, regional, and international companies, 12 of them participating for the first time in the exhibition, which has an overall area of 1100 square meters.
