You just moved to the island, would like to sort out your waste but don’t know how to recycle in Mauritius ? We’re psyched you’re taking the initiative, because waste is such a big problem today in our world, and unfortunately going zero-waste is still very complicated. So what is the best way to deal with your household waste in Mauritius so that you can contribute to a more circular economy ?
Everything you need to know to recycle in Mauritius
1. Waste in Mauritius is still a big issue
If you are an expat like us, you may be used to sort out your waste and have everything managed by your governement. In Mauritius, recycling is still at its early stage. Mauritius waste is disposed at the only landfill on the island, located at Mare Chicose (South-east of the island), but the landfill is nearing saturation and is reported to be badly managed according to audits. Projections show an alarming increase in waste intake, reaching 650,000 tons in 2023 with an annual growth rate of 2.5%.
Given the country’s limited amount of space for waste disposal and a significant rise in waste production, solutions allowing to manage wastes more sustainably have become critical.
There is hope though…
The Ministry of Environment, Solid Waste Management of Mauritius, in collaboration with the UNDP (United Nations Development Program) and local stakeholders, is working on a new regulatory framework to ensure the separate storage and transportation of wastes generated from target domestic, commercial, institutional, and industrial waste generators. Source segregation enables the identification of recyclable and recoverable materials, with the objective to divert up to 70% of solid wastes from the country’s saturated landfills.. A few workshops have been organised in August 2023 for the development of those Waster sorting at source regulations.
Meanwhile, recycling waste is being managed to a certain extent by private associations. There are a few of them, depending on the region. In Black River, We-Recycle and WeCycle, in collaboration with Mission Verte are the most active organisations. They play the role of intermediary between the population and the recyclers.
2. Not everything can be recycled
If you want to contribute, that’s amazing because it’s highly needed, but you must do it right! If you are trying to recycle items that are not recyclable, it might be worse than not doing it. For example, if you recycle items that are dirty and have been contaminated by food, then it will contaminate the other items as well in the same bin and make the recycling more difficult. If the bins are full, don’t leave your waste on the side as they might fly away and pollute the nearby environment.
Beside those common mistakes, note that some materials that you might think should be recyclable are not taken by the recyclers in Mauritius, so you might have to accept to throw them in the normal bin.
Plastic, paper, aluminium, tins…
Mission Verte in Tamarin only takes :
- paper
- cardboard
- eggs containers
- carton packaging
- plastic bottles : water, milk
- plastic boxes
- plastic containers for home cleaning products, shampoos, shower gels…
- aluminium cans (but not tin cans)
Unfortunately, those items are not recycled by the association:
- plastic or aluminium foil paper used to wrap candies, chocolate, butter…
- aluminium cluttery, plates or trays
- aerosols or sprays
- tin cans
- anything with metal
- napkins, tissue paper
- tetrapacks (milk cartons, juice cartons, …)
Glass
3. There are just a few bins in Black River
Unfortunately, recycling is not very convenient in the region. The not-for-profit We-Recycle manages the collection of waste from 110 eco-bins in the South, West and Center, partnering with Black River District Council, Beach Authority, malls/supermarkets, Espace Maison and other local partners. You can view the locations of their eco-bins, all located in strategic areas such as supermarkets, here. They usually collect cans, plastic bottles, glass bottles.
The for-profit company WeCycle is also organizing the collection for Mission Verte with a few bins around the country, including one at the parking of the school Paul & Virginie in Tamarin and one in Cascavelle Shopping Village. They usually collect cans, plastic waste, paper and cardboard.
Note that you can also recycle your e-waste (batteries, chargers and electronics) at Emtel stores, thanks to a collaboration between Emtel and Mission Verte.
4. Given the lack of infrastructure, try to adopt a zero-waste lifestyle…
Here is a few things you could do in Mauritius for example:
– Avoid single-use items. Plastic bags, straws, paper towels, tissue paper, plastic bottles, or even cling wraps can easily be eliminated using reusable ones. You’ll find very nice reusable bottles, cling wraps or straws for example in a stores, such as the Zardin Papou at Ruisseau Creole.
– Prefer products with less packaging, or even no packaging at all. Go for fresh foods rather than processed foods for example, or buy from zero waste stores or from the small stalls rather than supermarkets, using your own jars and containers. There is a zero waste grocery shop called Nourish by Tejo at Cap Dal shopping village in Tamarin. Over there, you can fill up at their refill station.
– Repurpose household items. Mason jars from spaghetti sauce or jam are great food storage containers and planters.
– Compost food waste. If you have a garden at home, compost is a great, natural way to get rid of food waste but also mulch your soil.
– Use rechargeable batteries. They are also more economical!
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2 Responses
Je pense que la conscientisation concernant le recyclage ou le traitement des déchets à Maurice et vraiment mal fais, Je pense vrais si Li y avait plus de publicité sur le traitement des déchets il aurait un début.
Propose une campaign continue pour cela.
Please reply in English if possible. My husband and I plan to move to Mauritius within next 6 months and VERY interested in eco-friendly options and services! Thank you.