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Republic of Marshall Islands Project Profile – Improving Solid Waste Management in Majuro: Diversion of 40% Waste from Landfill

The overflowing Jable–Batkan dumpsite in Majuro is an urgent problem for waste management faced in the Republic of Marshall Islands (RMI). This dumpsite has long exceeded its design capacity with waste now pushed up to 17m high against a seawall on the ocean side of the atoll. The priority for RMI is to reduce waste disposal at the dumpsite. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) seeks to focus their PacWastePlus investment to introduce a programme to divert the largest two components of waste - organics (17%) and paper/cardboard (22%) - from disposal and instead be processed to compost at an organics facility. In addition to reducing 40% of waste disposal at the dumpsite, almost doubling its remaining lifespan, this project will provide local organic compost to communities to assist improve with soil quality and crop yield.

Samoa Project Profile – Improving Management of E-waste: Collection, safe dismantling, export, and recycling of End-Of-Life electronic products

Samoa is utilising allocated PacWastePlus investment to design and implement an e-waste Take-Back system in order to reduce pollution and its resulting environmental and health impacts. To address the management of E-Waste, Samoa chooses to introduce sustainable financing legislation, design and implement an e-waste take back system, facilitate training on safe e-waste handling and dismantling, construct an e-waste dismantling and storage facility.

Solomon Islands Project Profile – Improving Solid Waste Management: Diversion of Organic and Recyclables from landfills

The predominant waste management solution offered in the Solomon Islands is landfilling, and recent audits suggest over half of all the waste to landfill is organic in nature and able to be composted rather than landfilled. A large amount of the remaining materials are recyclable - meaning the design and implementation of diversion projects could significantly reduce the amount of waste to landfills. As such, the Solomon Islands Government seeks to focus the PacWastePlus investment to design and implement an organic processing system to manage organic waste and will commence this work through the collection and processing of all organic wastes generated at the Gizo Market. In addition, the investment will be used to design and implement a sustainable financing system (Advance Recovery Fee and Deposit-ARFD) that will fund the collection and processing of recyclables. The introduction of these waste management systems has the potential to reduce the requirement for landfill space and therefore a substantial cost to the government and councils.

Tonga Project Profile – Asbestos Removal and Management in Tongatapu

Asbestos-containing materials are a major issue for many Pacific Island countries with a history of use of asbestos-containing materials (ACM) in construction. All forms of asbestos are carcinogenic to humans and inhalation of asbestos fibres that have become airborne can cause serious lung disease. The Department of Environment, from the Ministry of Meteorology, Energy, Information, Disaster Management, Environment, Climate Change and Communications (MEIDECC), seeks to build on the process started by PacWaste and utilise PacWastePlus funds to address asbestos removal and management

Tuvalu Project Profile – Outer Island Waste Improvement: Expansion of the Waste Levy and Assessment of Asbestos

Recognising Tuvalu has insufficient space to continually rely on waste disposal and stockpiling, the Tuvalu Department of Waste Management (DWM) has recently implemented several initiatives to improve solid and hazardous waste management and reduce risks to their people and environment. Many of these initiatives have focused on the capital island, Funafuti - home to 50% of the population. The DWM now seeks to extend waste management initiatives to Tuvalu’s eight Outer Islands.

Vanuatu Project Profile – Sustainable Financing for Solid Waste Management in Vanuatu: Assistance to Establish a Product Stewardship Scheme

Waste received at the main Bouffa landfill in Vanuatu is comprised of up to 35% of beverage containers products (aluminium, PET, glass). Beverage containers are also commonly seen as litter and in informal stockpiles or burnt by communities in pits. Vanuatu has had limited success implementing long-term solutions for recovery of recyclable items, due to lack of financing, infrastructure, technical expertise, and formal waste collection services. The Vanuatu Department of Environmental Protection and Conservation (DEPC) views a Sustainable Financing system (known as a Product Stewardship Scheme (PSS)) as a solution to enable the collection and management of recyclable items. The DEPC, with the support of Donors and a Working Group of interested parties, has been developing the PSS since 2017. The DEPC seeks for PacWastePlus to support the completion of additional components of this pathway – with the goal of implementing the PSS.

Palau Project Profile – Improving the Management of End-of-Life Tyres: Resource Recovery system

The absence of a local market for used tyres (whole or shredded) has resulted in the high volume of EOLT stockpiles in the country (13,739m³ of whole tyres, and 100m³ of shredded tyres). The Environment Quality Control Board of Palau (EQCB) will focus their PacWastePlus investment to establish a sustainable resource recovery programme in Palau to effectively manage the existing End-of-Life Tyres (EOLT) stockpiled in the country. The project will establish a legal framework to effectively regulate tyre importation, establish a national standard to ensure long-lasting tyres are imported for use in the country, provide for the development of a funding mechanism to ensure the sustainable collection and processing of the EOLTs, as well as guide the practical use of the currently stockpiled, and any newly generates EOLTs.

A Guide to Developing Project Engagement Plans: Stakeholder Education and Awareness

This guiding document aims to assist the development and implementation of meaningful actions to support project engagement through focused education, awareness, cost-effectiveness, sharing of ideas, and make the most effective use of the resources available.

Model Regional Education and Awareness Plan

This Model Regional Education and Awareness Plan (REAP) provides an overarching approach, that can be referenced in PacWastePlus country project National Education and Awareness Plans (NEAP) to support the implementation of the PacWastePlus programme throughout the region. The model REAP is designed for anyone who leads, creates, or manages waste-oriented projects and programs to engage and communicate with a broad range of stakeholders in the Pacific Region.

Pathway for a Sustainable Financing Mechanism

The development of a sustainable financing mechanism to assist with funding the sound management of wastes is an opportunity for countries and territories to explore, especially given the current level of donor support on waste management.

The proposed pathway for sustainable financing mechanism outlines 21 priority steps around the topics of:
i) identification of the need for legislation
ii) research
iii) political will and support
iv) preliminary systems concept
v) feasibility study
vi) consultation
vii) confirmation of sustainable finance system design
viii) legal drafting
ix) implementation
x) monitoring, evaluation, and auditing.

It is envisaged that the Secretariat will assist Members to implement as well as coordinate this Pathway through the Cleaner Pacific 2025 and capitalising on current donor-funded projects such as the PacWastePlus programme, GEF ISLANDS, SWAP and JPRISM II as well as any new projects that would be mobilised as part of the proposed pathway

Asbestos Management Legislative Reform Pathway

PacWastePlus has developed an Asbestos Management Legislative Reform Pathway that clearly identifies the steps necessary to institute bans on asbestos. This Pathway utilises and summaries the various work undertaken such as an analysis of legislative options for the management of asbestos, development of a guidance note/brief on the issues, and a Policy Note to guide the drafting of National legislation to impose a ban on the importation of asbestos. The development of these resources is in direct response to the outcomes of previous SPREP Meetings requesting specific assistance to manage asbestos and ban its importation to the region.