Press Release

Kovalam, Trivandrum : On the eve of Earth Day 2004, Thanal, a voluntary organization working on waste and issues of toxics in Kerala, joined the global environmental health coalition, GAIA and launched a report that promises a sustainable remedy to the rising waste problems in developing countries.

The report "Resources up in Flames: The Economic Pitfalls of Incineration versus a Zero Waste Approach in the Global South" was released by the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), who challenged policy makers to stop spending money for installing incinerators and other waste burning machines and redirect the funds into waste prevention and reduction and zero waste systems.

Releasing the report at a "Children for a Toxic Free World" workshop being held at the Zero Waste Centre in Azhakulam, Kovalam, Shibu K Nair, the Coordinator of the Zero Waste Kovalam Project said that "The Zero Waste Kovalam will be one of the models, where we have shown that sustainable benefits to the community by way of better jobs and cleaner environment can be ensured by adopting a Zero Waste approach". He reminded the Children gathered there that "This is also a model where the Government, Policy makers, Public, Business groups and Local Panchayath has come together to play a pro-active role to stop incinerators from harming the public".

On this occasion Ann Leonard, GAIA Co-Coordinator in Manila said that "Incineration encourages a one-way flow of materials on a finite planet. It makes the task of conserving resources and reducing waste more difficult, not easier. Policy makers and citizens need to work together to advance sustainable community-based solutions, without incineration".

Across the world, today GAIA member organizations are organizing various programmes for releasing this report to create awareness among people about the dangers of incineration and to warn the Governments against incineration.

The Zero Waste Kovalam Project was a culmination of an anti-incineration campaign launched in Kerala by Thanal, Greenpeace, Equations and GAIA against the incinerator proposal at Kovalam. Now initiatives and efforts are on at Kovalam to take it to a zero waste destination.

For details contact : Shibu K Nair, Thanal Ph: 0471-2727150, 98472-46681

Thanal is a Public Interest Research, Advocacy, Education and Action Trust working on Environmental Justice and Health. For more information www.thanal.org.

Zero Waste Kovalam Project is an on-going multi-stakeholder program led by Kerala Tourism, Thanal Greenpeace, GAIA (Global Alliance for Incineration Alternatives), KHRA (Kerala Hotels and Restaurants Association) - Kovalam Unit, and Local Self Governments.

GAIA is an international alliance of community-based organizations, research and policy advocacy institutions, citizen pressure groups and other nonprofit organizations and individuals working to end the burning of all types of discards and to promote clean production, zero waste, and sustainable waste management systems. It has offices in Quezon City, the Philippines and Berkeley, California. For more information on GAIA, log onto its web site at www.no-burn.org.