A Swachh Sevak loads the compressed plastic waste strewn by visitors to the Amrabad Tiger Reserve on a truck
HYDERABAD: A huge quantity of plastic bottles and bags is being dumped by visitors to the Amrabad Tiger Reserve despite it being a plastic-free zone. Around 600 kg of baled plastic was collected by ragpickers and transported to a recycling centre in Hyderabad on Tuesday.
From the Mannanur entrance to Domalapenta Range Check post, a large amount of polythene covers, wrappers, plastic bottles are littered by tourists and passengers who use the highway that passes through the reserve. A self-sustainable plastic waste management initiative was initiated in the reserve area in order to protect forest and wildlife. In August, 850 kg plastic waste was collected by 12 Swachh Sevaks and transported to a recycle centre at Mannanur. The collected plastic waste is segregated into PET bottles, multi-layered plastic, cardboard and others.
A total of three segregators along with a recycling shed are provided in the centre. The segregated plastic is baled using a manual baling machine to reduce the volume of plastic to be transported. Once 36 bales are collected, the baled plastic is transported to a waste recycler in Hyderabad in association with digital platform Recykal.
