HE Dr. Al Sada Urges Recycling of Plastic For Sustainable Development

Doha, March 01 (QNA) - HE the Minister of Energy and Industry Dr. Mohammed bin Saleh Al Sada told a Qatar Petrochemical Company (QAPCO) forum here Thursday the need to recycle plastic rather than focusing on it as a disposable commodity and help build a sustainable and environment friendly State of Qatar. HE Dr. Al Sada, said in his speech delivered before the 'Think Plastic Awareness Forum' held at the Ritz Carlton hotel here today and read out on his behalf by QAPCO Chairman and Qatar Petroleum (QP) Deputy Chairman Hamad Rashid Al Mohannadi, "Awareness campaigns such as this one , educate people on how to reduce, reuse and recycle plastics as a least desirable action to address this challenge." He urged the society to "cultivate a sense of environmental responsibility to spare the future generations the unwanted legacy of contamination". Stressing the primary goal of sustainable development, HE Dr. Al Sada said, "The aim is to create an economy that assures future generations' prosperity with a quality of life free from environmental damages." In the preamble of his speech to the Forum, HE Dr. Al Sada mentioned Qatar's diversification from oil and gas to production of downstream hydrocarbons namely ethylene and polyethylene which is used to produce various kinds of plastics. "Economic growth and prosperity often brings along with its production and usage a negative impact to the environment creating an immense challenge for sustainable development of the industry," he said. HE Dr. Al Sada noted the unique properties of plastics which make them durable. This has added to the quality of life and made it safe, however the chemical building blocks that make plastics so versatile are the very same elements that could harm people and the environment. HE the Minister of Energy and Industry Dr. Mohammed bin Saleh Al Sada went on to say in his speech before the ''Think Plastic Awareness Forum'', ''The production and disposal of this lightweight and inexpensive material contributes to an array of environmental problems that extend beyond the effect on humans littering the environment and endangering lives of many plant and animal species on this planet." HE Al Sada added that one solution was to treat plastic as a reusable material rather than as a disposable commodity. In this way we can help build a more sustainable and environmentally-friendly state of qatar and cultivate a sense of environmental responsibility to spare the future generations the unwanted legacy of contamination". Mentioning Qatar's pursuit of safe guarding the environment, he said, "The Qatar National Vision 2030, set forth by the visionary leadership of HH the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, which emphasises the environmental development of our country. "One of the four pillars of this vision stresses the importance of managing the environment and ensuring harmony between economic growth, social development and environmental protection," HE the Minister of Energy and Industry said. Reminding the gathering about the aims of the National Development Strategy 2011-2016, he said, "One of the outcomes is to build and strengthen public awareness about protecting the environment and encouraging the use of environment-friendly technologies." In conclusion HE Dr. Al Sada said that he was happy the aim of the campaign is to raise awareness about how plastics contribute to the quality of our life and clear misconceptions about them. "It is a compelling and ground-breaking initiative in line with our NDS. By embracing the concept of sustainable development and environmental protection we all show our full commitment to Qatar National Vision 2030." (QNA)