A green initiative to make Bahrain a recycling nation could be rolled out as early as next year, according to environmentalists.

The idea is to distribute bins across the country for free collection of recyclable waste.

A campaign encouraging people to recycle and separate their waste would also be part of the initiative.

The project was presented by Environment Friends Society president Khawla Al Muhannadi and Arteko managing director, Middle East, Boris Uhlig during a meeting at the Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) Support Centre, Tubli, last night.

The event was attended by NGOs and representatives from the public and private sectors.

'People aren't used to segregating their waste here and for years we have been trying to get them to do this,' Ms Al Muhannadi told the GDN.

'But we need containers and manpower to collect the waste.

'We also need companies to sponsor the initiative and an awareness campaign about the procedure itself.

'We started this a long time ago and had a company that recycled, but the problem was they found it difficult to collect the waste and didn't provide containers.'

She said Arteko had agreed to provide the containers and help with the recycling free of charge, but was looking for NGOs and private sector companies to support other elements of the initiative.

Arteko is a Germany-based company with offices in Bahrain, which has 40 years of experience in all sectors of waste management, recycling and sewage water treatment.

'We will start sometime next year with paper and different plastics and in the future hope to segregate the plastic further and recycle glass,' she said.

Participants explored other opportunities for green community programmes and education.

The meeting was organised by EFS in collaboration with Arteko.-TradeArabia News Service