Manager Raynold Arthurton remarked,‘and now they will serve a practical purpose in road construction.’ Beyond engineering innovations, the Authority will revive a well-received plastics collection initiative that ended due to project funding cycles.The General Manager noted that “through the Community and Schools Plastic Collection Initiative, the SLSWMA will build on and provide continuity to the earlier RePLAST OECS Pilot Plastic Recycling Project, which had established pop up collection depots in several communities”.The RePLAST Project was a pioneering initiative launched in May 2019 to tackle plastic waste in the Eastern Caribbean. Spearheaded by UNITE Caribbean and supported by the Republic of France and the Government of Saint Lucia, the project aimed to establish a sustainable, incentivized plastic waste collection and recycling system. RECRUITING TALENT FOR WASTE MANAGEMENT Recruiting qualified staff for waste management positions often proves difficult, even in a region where unemployment remains a persistent concern. ‘People complain that there are no jobs and that young people are qualified,’ observes General Manager Raynold Arthurton,‘but when we advertise, sometimes we get zero applicants or the applicants we do get are not suitable for the position.’ These recruitment challenges highlight the highly specialized nature of waste management, a sector that demands technical skills, regulatory knowledge 7 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN VOLUME 12, ISSUE 08 SAINT LUCIA SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY
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