Nabi leaves behind 600 tons of ‘green’ debris

Island cleanup crews collected some 9,000 to 10,000 cubic yards of organic debris that was left behind by Typhoon Nabi on the island of Saipan alone.

Department of Public Works Division of Solid Waste Management program manager Robert Jordan said the recent cleanup gathered more than 600 tons of green wastes, which are now in a big pile at the division’s transfer station in Lower Base in Puerto Rico.

Jordan said the dumpsite in Lower Base is one of two dumps for the typhoon debris. The other is in Marpi. Both dumps have approximately the same amount of green wastes.

Jordan said the organic waste will be shredded into wood chips “All of the waste will go to the chipping machine,” he said. “I just wish we have a bigger machine to chip all the wood.”

Members of the public who may want to obtain the wood chips for their gardening requirements or any other purposes may call the Solid Waste Management office.

Jordan said this is part of their recycling program at the waste division. Recycling these green waste would stop them throwing all the waste into the landfill in Marpi.

The DPW Operations and Maintenance officers and staff held a major cleanup drive last week right after Typhoon Nabi struck the island. They started the cleanup from Garapan all the way to Susupe, ending their work last Sunday. The cleanup was in collaboration with Hawaiian Rock Corp., which provided some trucks and backhoes. Community members such as the Marianas High School MyWave Club also helped in the cleanup drive last weekend.

The division early this month launched its recycling competition inviting all public and private schools, as well as the rest of the community, to join this year’s 2nd Annual Islandwide School Recycling Contest, which aims to encourage people to properly manage their waste at home and at school.

Jordan said the competition aims to increase awareness, especially among children, on the significance of recycling.

Deadline for registration is on Sept. 30 and the last day for submission of the recyclable waste materials is on Nov. 8. The awarding is on Nov. 15, coinciding with the rest of the nation’s awarding ceremonies for the same competition.

This year’s competition includes recycling of five major solid wastes found in the community: pulp products and cardboard, glass, aluminum, metals and plastic bottles. Jordan said they also extended the competition to 10 weeks instead of just 10 days, like what they did last year. He said the extension would allow the participants to collect more wastes for recycling.