ABU DHABI, (Pakistan Point News - 30th Jun, 2021) Abu Dhabi Waste Management Centre (Tadweer) has registered remarkable achievements in 2020 despite the unprecedented challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic to its operations.
Tadweer’s achievements covered the full spectrum of its operational sectors, including pest control, waste collection and transportation, projects and facilities management, and environmental awareness and education. In parallel, the centre made a significant contribution to the national disinfection programme throughout its run.
The inspection and monitoring teams of the Pest Control Projects Department at Tadweer stepped up efforts to contain mosquito and fly proliferation across Abu Dhabi Emirate.
The centre has also implemented an integrated mosquito control programme that incorporates the latest practices to effectively control pests and ensure that their breeding rates remain under permissible levels.
Through the effective use of insect traps in the monitoring and control operations, a total of 2,073,453 mosquitoes, 404,377 large insects, and 2,942,621 small insects were monitored.
Tadweer also undertook various measures to eliminate mosquito breeding sites in various regions of Abu Dhabi through constantly surveying and monitoring potential breeding sites in farms and construction and residential project sites.
It also collaborated with Abu Dhabi International Airport to monitor breeding sites of mosquitoes that transmit diseases and carried out several awareness programmes through various print, visual, audio, and social media platforms.
In 2020, Tadweer eliminated 60% of the pest habitats in various regions of the emirate and reduced the use of pesticides by 20% compared to 2019 owing to the use of smart traps.
Furthermore, the proliferation of rodents in residential areas was reduced from 3.3% in 2019 to 2.2% in 2020. Likewise, the infestation of American cockroaches decreased to 1.9% in 2020 from 2% in the previous year, while rodent infestation in farms saw a sharp decline from 14.6% in 2019 to 3.8% in 2020.
Tadweer also ran 10 public awareness programmes last year to highlight the risks associated with pest infestations and ways to prevent them. It also ensured the compliance of 88% of developers with its waste management and pest control circular.
The pest control teams at Tadweer operate in various geographical sectors across Abu Dhabi including Abu Dhabi Island (east and west), Abu Dhabi City, Yas Island, Al Ain City (the northern and southern regions), and Al Dhafra Region.
The centre also received 74,484 pest control requests from the public and detected 5,303,205 infested sites.
In addition to seven operational contracts, Tadweer awarded last year contracts worth AED2.4 billion to carry out waste collection and transportation services in a total area covering 67,340 km. It also deployed a team comprising 66 inspectors and 7,600 workers equipped with 1,445 vehicles and 162,000 bins.
Last year, Tadweer unloaded containers carrying municipal solid waste 4,212,000 times posting an average annual increase of 3.2%. The centre also handled 88,220 tons of waste every month using 162,000 containers, 215 equipment and an 805-strong workforce.
Tadweer also collected 6,820 tons of bulky waste from the Abu Dhabi region last year, representing a change of 25.3%. This included 3,960 tons of bulky waste from the Abu Dhabi region, 2,410 tons from Al Ain region, and 450 tons from Al Dhafra region.
Meanwhile, the average annual amount of the green waste transported and collected from across the emirate in 2020 stood at 8,925 tons, representing an annual change of 25.25%. This includes 2,070 tons from the Abu Dhabi region, 2,125 tons from Al Ain region, and 4,740 tons from Al Dhafra region.
These achievements articulate Tadweer’s efforts to develop an advanced waste management infrastructure to attract investments through opening three new facilities to treat medical and hazardous waste.
The centre launched a new facility for the treatment of fallen stock in Abu Dhabi city according to the highest international and local standards. The facility is aligned with Abu Dhabi’s objective of ensuring the safe and proper disposal of all types of waste.
The centre also accorded high importance to the implementation of strategic projects in Al Dhafra region. It opened a demolition and construction waste recycling facility in Ghayathi and commenced the operation of a tire recycling facility at Madinat Zayed and Ghayathi landfills.
As part of its response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Tadweer deployed three mobile facilities in a record time. Installed and operated within 48 hours, these facilities supported the key COVID-19 screening and quarantine centres in Abu Dhabi in the safe disposal of medical and hazardous waste.
The centre also obtained approval for 4 organic fertiliser products from the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and set up a new solar energy unit at Al Dhafra plant.
The department is to launch two of its most important strategic projects in the next few months, including the Waste-to-Energy (WTE) project and the MRF & RDF project.
The Licensing, Tariff and Customer Service Department at Tadweer continued its achievement in 2020. Notable among them are the integration of its services with the digital identity, integration with the Unified Services Platform (TAMM) and imposition of administrative penalties in case of repeated violations.
The department also developed an initiative to classify companies providing environmental service, and an initiative to develop a new waste reduction system.
In 2020, the centre hosted and participated in nearly 110 awareness events and campaigns across Abu Dhabi’s three regions, and actively supported several sub-campaigns in schools, private and public organisations, and commercial areas. This allowed Tadweer to carry its message to over 254,430 people from various segments of society including Emiratis and residents from various nationalities.
As a key priority in Tadweer’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Environment, Health and Safety Department at the centre adopted a comprehensive plan to create a safe environment for all workers within the Waste Sector during its’ normal operations, emergencies and the current crisis, and developed programmes that ensured the health and safety of all workers contracted with Tadweer.
The department delivered meaningful KPIs in terms of strategic and operational objectives for the environment, health, safety and business continuity. Between the first and fourth quarters of 2020, the department achieved 90% of its overall KPI targets.
In terms of business continuity, the department redeveloped its business continuity system in line with the national and international standards, achieving 81% compliance by end of 2020, up from 41% in 2019.
Ever since the COVID-19 outbreak began, Tadweer’s field and administrative teams worked around the clock to ensure optimal results from the centre's participation in the programme, while protecting the health and safety of the Abu Dhabi community from all adverse effects of the pandemic.
To support the programme, the centre deployed a 972 strong task force of disinfection specialists, engineers, supervisors, technicians, cleaners and administrative staff. Working for ten hours a day, the team completed a total of 1.8 million hours over 227 days till 8th November, 2020.
Falah Mohamed Al Ahbabi, Chairman of Tadweer, said, "We are proud of the achievements Tadweer accomplished over the past year through adopting a well-rounded strategy to fulfil its objectives of supporting Abu Dhabi’s sustainable development.
"Tadweer’s efforts and initiatives are aligned with Abu Dhabi Government's priority to improve the quality of life in both urban and rural areas and preserve the Emirate’s environment for the current and future generations in collaboration with its strategic partners.
Dr. Salem Al Kaabi, Director-General of Tadweer, said: "The achievements Tadweer made over the past year can be attributed to the centre's strategic vision to develop an integrated system to effectively manage different types of waste."
"In waste projects and facilities management, our key achievements include the opening of the environmentally friendly waste treatment complex named ‘Eco Park’, the launch of new medical and hazardous waste treatment facilities in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain and Al Dhafra, and finalising the design of Al Dhafra landfill road and main gate. We also completed the study and tender document preparation for the resource recovery and the waste to fuel facilities and incorporated quality requirements in new contracts."
