For the paper mill: A worker handling boxes which are compressed and stored at Alam Flora’s Integrated Recycling Facility in Precinct 5, Putrajaya. — IZZRAFIQ ALIAS/The Star
WHAT goes on at recycling centres can be turned into programmes to further promote the practice in communities.
These centres in Putrajaya and Petaling Jaya, while important to prevent waste from ending up in landfills, have also become places of learning for the public to rethink the way they dispose of waste.
Alam Flora Environment Solution manager Ismi Azura Istear Khan said Putrajaya had an Integrated Recycling Facility (IRF) along with a community recycling centre or Pusat Kitar Semula Komuniti Putrajaya.
The Koc Ilmu at IRF in Putrajaya. It has a mini library for children. — Photos: IZZRAFIQ ALIAS, SAMUEL ONG and LOW BOON TAT/The Star
“Once a teacher asked me what happened to the waste which had been separated and sent for recycling. She also said the students would like to see the next process,” she said.
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Knowing there was interest, she said, the IRF also became a place where the public could learn what happens behind the scenes.
Ismi said the IRF had an old railway passenger coach which had been turned into an education centre called Koc Ilmu (knowledge coach).
“We have a team that turned a former train coach into an educational space loaded with books and reading room. This is also an attraction at the IRF,” she said.
The Spine @ PJKita in SS7 is another recycling centre in Petaling Jaya that attracts the community.
She said the IRF, which had been in operation in Precinct 5 since 2019, recovered about 400 tonnes of recyclables monthly from 67,510 landed properties in Putrajaya.
The average amount of recyclables collected yearly is about 3,200 tonnes. There are 14 dedicated staff and one supervisor who are trained to separate the waste that are sent to the IRF.
“The recovery rate is 70%,” she said.
Among the recyclables are boxes which are compressed and sent to the paper mill to be turned into cardboard boxes.
Papers are also sent to paper mills. Plastic bottles that are big and bulky are shredded into flakes before being sent to be recycled for the plastic industry.
As for ewaste, it is sent for recycling at approved Department of Environment centres.
The community recycling centre in Putrajaya receives good public support.
She said Alam Flora first started with educational outreach programmes at schools and offices in Putrajaya.
“It was not an easy task when the campaign started as there were still old mindsets that needed to be changed.
“In 2000 we had a campaign to educate people to throw their rubbish into the dustbin. People used to tie plastic bags of rubbish and hang them on their fences.
“We have come a long way since then. People are more civic-conscious as they now discard their waste properly into the bins while also recycling,” she said.
Over at Precinct 9 in Putrajaya, the community recycling centre also has a Resell 3R Boutique that sells bags, shoes and clothes to the public.
During weekends we see many families dropping by to donate their recyclables, she said.
“They come as a family and sometimes the recycling activities are done together,” said Ismi.
The recyclables which are dropped off can also be redeemed for cash. (see graphic)Ismi said in 2004 the then prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi declared Putrajaya as a recycling city.
Preloved toys are sold for as low as RM1 at the PJ Eco Recycling Plaza.
Since then, numerous other efforts have been carried out to promote recycling.
“In 2005 we started our door-to -door recycling campaign and distributed blue and white plastic bags for the programme.
“The blue bag is for residents to discard their papers for recycling and the white bag is for other forms of recyclables,
“We also used to go to schools and promote recycling to students,” she said.
Workshops and exhibitions
In Petaling Jaya, the PJ Eco Recycling Plaza is popular among the community there.
MBPJ Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Department director Zain Azly Abdul Rahman said the centre attracted about 10,000 visitors last year.
Fourteen staff and one supervisor are trained to separate waste at the IFR.
The plaza, located at the Sungai Way Free Trade Industrial Zone, allows the public to drop off their recyclables but no cash is offered.
It opened to the public officially in March 2022 but has been in operation since 2019.
Activities at the plaza include workshops, sale of preloved items, exhibition, training and celebration of environment- related activities.
“Until April this year, we had about 4,000 people visiting the plaza. It comprised the public, students, corporate groups and other government agencies,” he said.
The pre-loved shop is popular and the plaza acts as an educational centre, he added.
The learning corner of the IRF.
“We have polystyrene recycling that takes place here. People from all parts of the city also drop their recyclables here,” he said.
The plaza collected 106,607kg of recyclables last year comprising papers, cardboard, polystyrene, glass and ceramic, metal and aluminium, and used clothes.
In the past, people would send their recyclables without washing them properly. However, this has changed and the city has among the best quality of recyclable items as people have become better educated about this.
“The items most received include papers, boxes and used clothes,” he said.
The plaza aims to become a one-stop 5R (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Rethink, Reinvent) centre.
“We aim to develop the plaza as the 5R excellence centre,” he said.
The PJ Eco Recycling Plaza is also a learning centre on the process of recycling items such as polystyrene.
Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) has also launched a new recyclable drop-off at The Spine @ PJKita at Jalan Stadium SS 7/15 early this year.
Environment and waste management specialist Dr Theng Lee Chong said Malaysian were now recycling even without incentives.
He said the polystyrene recycling in PJ Eco Recycling Plaza was interesting as the public could see how it was done.
“Centres such as these are a great service to the environment and also the community. People need more such places to carry out recycling actively.
The PJ Eco Recycling Plaza is popular among Petaling Jaya folk and students.
“In Japan, they have a recycling plaza in the same location as the incinerators where students and adults get to see what happens to their recyclables.
“Now the challenge is how to engage with those who do not visit these centres and are still not keen on recycling,” he said.
Theng said more promotion of these centres needed to be carried out in schools and in organisations to make the culture of recycling a lifestyle.
