Adverts speak of how buying a new car will bring us feelings of speed, freedom and moving up in the world. Yet have you ever considered what happens once they reach the end of the road?
Cars contain valuable raw materials that can be given a new life. Disposing of them correctly can also help avoid dangerous pollution. Tyres leach toxic substances in landfills for example, and release harmful substances and fine particles when burned.
Kazakhstan has been on the sharp end of this challenge - between 2000 and 2017, the number of vehicles in the country ballooned from 1.3 million to almost 5 million.
Yet the opening of a new recycling plant in Kazakhstan’s Karanga region this year means that up to 50,000 old cars can now be recycled – avoiding pollution while helping the economy! Plastic, metal and rubber are re-used while dangerous liquids are removed. Heating oil from the cars are even converted to power the recycling plant itself.
In 2016, before the new plant opened, the country already recycled 5,665 vehicles that were on average 25-30 years old, as well as 18,000 tonnes of old tyres. The latter can be converted into road surfaces or strengthen riverbanks for example.
UN Environment’s Waste Management Outlook for Central Asia lays out the waste challenges in the region, while also sharing best practices and providing recommendations for countries, the private sector, civil society and others.
Over 400 million tons of industrial waste are generated in Central Asia each year, yet new legislation and investment is starting to show remarkable progress and can help beat pollution.
On 4-6 December, world leaders will meet to discuss solutions for fighting pollution at the third UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi. These include switching to renewable energy, adopting clean transport, as well as improved waste management and urban planning.
Read more on p.72 of the Waste Management Outlook for Central Asia here or get to grips with the background report to the third UN Environment Assembly, ‘Towards a Pollution-Free Planet’, here.
Discover what UN Environment’s International Environmental Technology Centre does by clicking here and more on our work in Central Asia here.
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