Young Cambodian women on a green mission to build roads with plastic waste

PHNOM PENH: The Cambodian capital Phnom Penh was once known as the "Pearl of Asia", with a lovely post-colonial Khmer architecture, pristine parks and tree-lined avenues. garbage engulfs acres of garbage dumps and filthy, stinking streets of garbage and decay

But one day he could see new roads built with garbage if the Department of Public Works and Transportation picks up the suggestion of two female students Cambodian – Sokanha Ly and Bunhourng Tan – whose ecological creation could turn plastic waste into cheaper and better quality roads.

They are graduates of Harpswell, a foundation based in Phnom Penh that teaches young Cambodian women to be leaders through debates and civic engagement. in English and French, they co-founded in 2016 a start-up called Eco-Plastic to transform garbage into roads

"We want to see Eco-Plastic as an ecological mechanism to solve hell plastic in Cambodia, Southeast Asia and the world, "said Bunhourng Tan, 21, a student in business administration at the American University of Phnom Penh.

In addition, we want Eco-plastic to serve as a legacy for the next generation to lead, love and live green

Worried about the waste problem in Cambodia, young entrepreneurs have spent years researching how they could turn "plastic hell" into a green product.

Their efforts led to the creation of PAC – Plastic Asphalt Concrete – a combination of plastic waste and bitumen, a black hydrocarbon mixture used for road surfacing. The difference between PAC and traditional asphalt concrete is that the former is cheaper and produces stronger and more durable roads.

CAMBODIA: THE KINGDOM OF PLASTIC

The green creation of the female duo owes its birth to the plastic waste that swallows their country quickly. Data from the Ministry of the Environment show that Cambodia produces more than 4,000 tons of waste daily. Its capital alone generates more than 2,000 tons of waste every day, of which 17% is plastic.

"We are extremely worried," said Dy Kiden, director of the Ministry's Department of Solid Waste. to the standard; These are open-air installations. Thus, people living nearby suffer from odor and flies. "

The solid waste of more than 1.5 million residents in Phnom Penh is found in two dumps – one in Dangkao District and the other in Steung Menchey, which is already full. In Dangkao, the facility extends over 310,000 sqm and is designed to operate for 25 years. Today, nine years after being commissioned, it is about to reach full capacity.

"If we do not reduce waste or rework it, the impact will be huge," Kiden told Channel NewsAsia. Reprocessing plants often discourage investors from green activities and garbage collection for export remains a "competitive" industry in Cambodia.

As the nation develops, plastic waste continues to accumulate in landfills. In Phnom Penh, about 10 million plastic bags are consumed every day, according to a study by the ACRA Foundation for Sustainable Development. Each year, according to the foundation, an average urban Cambodian uses over 2,000 plastic bags, ten times more than in China and the countries of the European Union.

The situation is similar in other urban areas such as Siem Reap, which is home to the UNESCO World Heritage Site Angkor Wat, which has attracted more than 2 million visitors year-round last. According to the Ministry of the Environment, more than 20% of its waste comes from plastic. The number is even higher – 34% – in the popular seaside resort of Sihanoukville, where plastic bags and bottles pollute its beaches and sea.

To reduce plastic waste, the Cambodian government recently banned production, distribution and plastic bags of a width less than 25 cm and a diameter less than 0.03 cm. Supermarkets and shopping centers are also required to charge customers for plastic bags at checkout counters.

The government aims to halve the use of plastic in 2019 and 70% in the next seven years.

DRASTIC PLASTIC

In their fight against plastic waste, Sokanha and Bunhourng won the recognition of business competitions in Cambodia and beyond.

The pair recently won silver at the Mekong Business Challenge in Bhutan, where its eco-plastic beat nine entrepreneurial teams from six nations. In May, they received an honorable mention at the 2018 International Business Model Competition, in Utah, USA, after Eco-Plastic ranked among the top ten. The Starter Contest is an annual event involving thousands of student teams from hundreds of schools around the world

"Our next step is research and development (R & D) We are exploring new materials to add to PACs to make our product more unique, more economical and more efficient," said 21-year-old Sokanha. Civil Engineering student at Zaman University of Cambodia.

Plastic waste is not just a problem in Cambodia. By 2015, some 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic waste had been generated worldwide, according to a report from researchers at the University of California, University of Georgia, and Woods Hole Institute in Massachusetts, United States. 12% were incinerated and 79% were accumulated in landfills or in the natural environment, "the report says. If current trends in production and waste management continue, the figure could reach 12 billion tonnes by 2050.

Compared to the rest of the world, Asia accounts for more than 49% of global plastic production, according to a report from the PlasticsEurope Plastic Manufacturers Association, with China ranking at 28%.

& # 39; THE PLASTIC ROADS & # 39;

As countries around the world are trying to become greener, the concept of recycled plastic road construction has attracted more and more attention. 30,000 km of roads with shredded plastic. Last year, the Dutch company VolkerWessels said it was planning to use plastic waste in the ocean to build highways in Rotterdam. The idea is explored in various parts of the UK.

In Cambodia, the women's duo are working hard to improve their commercial product and save the environment. Although the Ministry of Transport and Transport offered them "huge support" to build and test their prototypes, they said that there were still challenges, lack of local investment opportunities to limited technical expertise and facilities for experiments. see a brilliant prospect of introducing innovative engineering technologies into their homeland and help the government to tackle social problems, not to mention the chance to inspire and empower the Cambodian women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Technology can turn fantasy into reality, "said Sokanha.

" The key message is "Never give up and hard work pays off."