- unwaste.io has launched an app for plastic waste management in East Africa.
- The App will help to improve the collection of single-use plastic.
- The data will also help to r educate people on better plastic waste disposal practices.
unwaste.io has launched a new app, ‘wastebase’, to improve the collection of single-use plastic in Tanzania, Mozambique and Zambia. Wastebase is currently available for download on the Google Play Store and will help to improve the collection of non-recyclable plastic waste in the East African sub-region and the UK.
According to unwaste.io., waste collectors will be able to sort and scan plastic bottles by barcode using their smartphones. The data for each product is instantly uploaded to the digital platform. Data partners (trained volunteers from Wastebase partner organisations) then link each product to brand, ownership and distribution information.
The expectation is that the data collected over time can be reorganised by authorities, mapped and then used to inform regional and national waste management projects.
unwaste.io currently partners with several environmental organisations to ensure the effectiveness of Wastebase in East Africa, including the Repensar Environmental Education Cooperative, based in Maputo, Mozambique, the Centre for Zero Waste and Development in Zambia and Nipe Fagio, based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. During the application test, the Repensar team was able to collect, sort and record over 2,800 bottles in a 2.5-hour session.
The data will also help raise awareness among plastic producers about the ecological impacts of their products and educate people on better plastic waste disposal practices.