Rory;
Don't make it a "law" make it " worth their while " by offering cash for the cans, and watch the stuff disappear from the roadsides, when people find out that they can get CASH for cans at the recycling depot.
Money is a great motivator, even in Nassau. <grin>
Jim Bunting.

I can see those recycle bins getting tiefed from the roadside around here ;)

I had this idea as well.

Problem is we dont have a million plus people. We would have to collect from all hotels and all crew ships, as someone mentioned before. However, this may still not make enough tonnage to compare with a city in the states with millions of people.

Cost of equipment and labour would be too much. Best option is collection and shipment to processing plant in the US.

Look at other caribbean nations and see what programs exist, also Unicef may have some numbers and papers on this.

we've tried a variety of programs on eleuthera and harbour island over the years, but it simply doesn't break even costs-wise, even though we recycle bottles and cans, and take them over to the states for processing. we take them by boat and by plane.

we burn paper and wood, but there's a ton of plastic crap that we can't do anything with ... any and all help would be much appreciated.

we've tried a variety of programs on eleuthera and harbour island over the years, but it simply doesn't break even costs-wise, even though we recycle bottles and cans, and take them over to the states for processing. we take them by boat and by plane.
we burn paper and wood, but there's a ton of plastic crap that we can't do anything with ... any and all help would be much appreciated.

enter BDB or let this be a govt initiative...there are companies that make billions around the world int he trash business.

Canewry:
Yes, I have an investor here in Canada who wants to find out about the situation, re the possibility of starting a recycling business in The Bahamas. This would create jobs for Bahamians, as well as cleaning up the roadsides and the vacant lands, which, if I remember my last visit down there, were strewn with junk of all kinds.
I'd appreciate it if someone would give a sensible answer to my inquiry. It makes no sense, to me, to see that valuable materials are beiing buried in a landfill site, instead of being collected and sold at a profit, and at the same time, those materials are creating a blight on the landscape of New Providence. The appearance of a place ( New Providence ) that is littered with pop cans, plastic bags and food warappers, does little to encourage return visits by Tourists, does it?
Jim Bunting. Toronto.

I think we can rely on ourselves to start this initiative. why should this go to another foreignor?

most are just being dumped at harold road .. ;)
There is no law to recycle and even if there was, I doubt Bahamian would follow it, like everything else, especially since many laws simply arent enforced.

youd be surprised.

I can see those recycle bins getting tiefed from the roadside around here ;)

You is a strakt NUT! All da NAssau people gun be mad at you fer callin dem tief!

ROFL!

I say do a feasability study and go for it. Folks are paying good money for 100% recycled aluminium foil. That would be a nice industrial boost to the Bahamas and some decent manufacturing jobs.

With the Container port when you expand you could ship scrap aluminium from all over the region and do well.

Good luck. I love to hear of Bahamians making good coin.

You really want a money maker,

Just collect all of the oil from all the chicken shack and mcdonalds in nassau. Stockpile it, set up a biodiesel plant.

Then get government to ban all cars on the island that dont run on biodiesel,

You would be rich,

The Race is On!

You is a strakt NUT! All da NAssau people gun be mad at you fer callin dem tief!


I aint call everyone a tief, just the ones that is tief from peeps .. ;)

Lynette:
Paper and plastic are less valuable than aluminium. Perhaps a different business idea might be.............a secure on site document shredding service, with a large shredder mounted in a truck, so that "sensitive documents" can be destroyed at the location and then removed for incineration, under controlled security.
Banks, investment companies, and of course the Bahamian Government's many ministries would all be potential customers.
Jim Bunting.


Actually we have one of those. A big shredder mounted on a truck for secure doucments and such.
I was not advocating a paper and plastic recycling plant for profit but more for saving the environment and using less trees.

Rory:

No roadside or street side bins, just a secure, fenced in depot, where people can exchange their cans for cash.

Jim B.

Rory:
No roadside or street side bins, just a secure, fenced in depot, where people can exchange their cans for cash.
Jim B.



So are you gonna go for it?

*Sunny again singing the praises of Freeport*

We also tief less than Nassau and da trash pickup is very standardized so your recycle bins would be safe! :D

Big10:

Think about it..........everyday, containers full of beer, and soda arrive in Nassau, from the USA. I know, as my brother in law runs a import company that brings in groceries, and beer, Everyone drinks soda, and/or beer, so the supply is endless. Containers go back to the US empty. What does the Bahamas export in any great quantity? Nothing. So the cost of the containers will be low, as the shipping companies would rather get something, rather than nothing, for the return trip.

Equipment?

One flat bed truck, to haul the plastic barrels full of cans from the hotels and bars, to the crusher, and a fork lift to place the barrels, strapped to skids, into the container, and a heavy duty scale to weigh each barrel, to calculate the total weight of the materials being shipped to the USA. Not a huge amount of an investment, is it? All of the shipment is recyclable. the cans, the plastic barrels, and the wood skids.

Jim. B

Islandgal:

One suggestion re plastic bottles.........

Here in Canada one of the major national grocery/supermarket companies, Loblaw's, has brought out a alternative to the "plastic grocery bag " that is made of 90 percent recycled plastic pop bottles. This bag will last up to a year, will carry about double the capacity of the "regular grocery bag " and best of all it sells for only fifty cents. They expect that in the next year, about 80 percent of their customers will switch to this "green grocery bag ". When it does wear out, Loblaws will take it back and recycle it again.

That is one way to recycle the plastic bottles, but it does involve a large financial investment to make them.

Another item that is made from recyled plastic is car floor mats, and outdoor carpet, for decks and patios. Hardwearing and can be made in many colours. A final item is "plastic wood" that is a mixture of plastic resins and sawdust, that is moulded and looks like lumber. It can be cut, shaped and sanded like real wood, but it doesn't rot or crumble like wood does.

Jim B.

tafadali:

The Canadian investor has a large recycling company, with a number of contracts with cities here. He is very experienced, and my role is to develop the plan for expansion in the Bahamas .

If it were not for "foreigners " the Bahamas would not be where it is now. Is the idea of investment so distastefull to you? I expect that you don't eat at any of those "foreign " fast food places, or drive a "imported car " do you?

Jim B.