Tongatapu residents are now able to earn money from returning their empty PET plastic beverage bottles and cans, in a new programme formally launched in Nuku’alofa Saturday.
The programme is the result of a partnership between the Tonga Recycling Association, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) and Coca-Cola ASEAN & South Pacific, with support from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
TRA President Saimone Vuki says the programme was a pilot last year with eight schools in the Tongatapu 1 electorate which have acted as the collection sites for the bottles and cans.
It has now been extended to all schools across Tongatapu – and there are plans to add a public collection centres.
“We are delighted to be now collecting cans and PET beverage bottles in Tonga to be recycled, rather than sent to the landfill.
“In the schools’ programme, students are encouraged to bring in their used PET bottles and cans and put them in a bag provided to the schools. TRA then collects the material, we take it back to our site, turn it into bales and export it for recycling.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for us all to do the right thing, in terms of recycling our bottles and cans, but to also help raise money for the schools.”
He says the public collection centre will extend the programme to the general public for the first time – with the aim of increasing further the amount of bottles and cans collected.
Local MP, Tevita Puloka, says: “We have been very proud to be involved in this programme. The formal launch marks a historic time for Tongatapu 1 as we encourage our people to care about our precious environment by becoming part of this project.
“We are happy to join hands with TRA, Coca-Cola and JICA as, without their support, this would not have happened. We are keen to engage our young people, together with the whole community, and ensure our environment in Tonga will be greener and cleaner for future generations,” he says.
A competition was held in the electorate’s secondary schools to create the scheme name and logo. At the launch the student who designed the winning entry, Soakai Malu of Kolomotu’a, was awarded a prize of TOP1,000 (US$415), together with the honour of his design as the face of the collection scheme.
Jeff Maguire, Director of Collection and Recycling at CCEP, says: “Together with our partner, Coca-Cola ASEAN & South Pacific, we are extremely proud to be working with TRA on this collection scheme.
“Ultimately, we plan to bring the PET bottles back to a recycling plant in Australia where they can be turned back into recycled PET plastic bottles.”
Natalie Helm, Senior Director Public Affairs, Communication and Sustainability at Coca-Cola ASEAN South Pacific, says: “The collection and recycling of beverage packaging is critical, and we are proud to be a leading partner in supporting PET plastic bottle and can collection in Tonga.
“We recognise that collective action is needed to support packaging collection infrastructure and policies. We will continue to work with our partners, focusing on well-designed collection systems as these are often the most efficient ways to improve packaging collection rates,” he says.
