According to a report, it is estimated that 15 to 20% of all plastics are entering oceans via riverine ecosystems. In view of this, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India and Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety signed an agreement on ‘Cities Combating Plastic Entering the Marine Environment’ at a virtual ceremony in New Delhi.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Durga Shanker Mishra, Secretary, MoHUA said, “The year 2021 marks 63 years of fruitful development cooperation between our two countries. It gives me great pleasure to kickstart this new endeavor with our German partner. The project’s outcomes are completely in line with the objectives of Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban focusing on sustainable solid waste management and Prime Minister’s vision to phase out single use plastic by 2022.”
This project is envisaged under the contours of the Joint Declaration of Intent regarding cooperation in the field of ‘Prevention of Marine Litter’ signed between Republic of India and Federal Republic of Germany in 2019. The project, aimed at enhancing practices to prevent plastic entering the marine environment, will be undertaken at the national level (at MoHUA), select States (Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Andaman & Nicobar Islands) and in the cities of Kanpur, Kochi and Port Blair for a period of three and a half years.
This project will support the Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban’s implementation with special focus on preventing plastic litter entering the rivers and water bodies at source. To this end, cities will be enabled to improve collection, segregation and marketing of plastic waste, to prevent plastic disposal to water bodies, and to improve handling of port and marine waste.