Cinnamon Grand launches e-waste awareness and recycling initiative

In a first-of-its-kind programme to be launched by a five-star city hotel, the Cinnamon Grand Colombo in collaboration with Think Green Pvt. Ltd. launched its electronic waste (e-waste) awareness and recycling initiative for staff on 5 June, World Environment Day. The initiative is part of the hotel’s commitment to be an environmentally responsible corporate citizen.

As part of the environmental-friendly initiative, e-waste recycling bins were handed over to the hotel by Think Green, a certified e-waste recycling company.

E-waste includes items such as mobile phones, cable modems, laptops, computers, etc., and accounts for over 70% of toxic waste in landfills. Improper disposal leads to serious pollution and health problems. It is believed that over eight tons of e-waste is collected from Colombo alone every two days.

As an entity that is deeply committed to being an environmentally conscious corporate citizen that cares for the planet and people, the Cinnamon Grand’s journey of sustainability is aimed at looking at every aspect of its operational processes and the daily actions that it could take to mitigate the negative impact it might have on the natural world, said Cinnamon Grand’s Manager Marketing Communications & Sustainability Tharika Goonathilake.

Goonathilake asserted that current consumption levels and technologically-addicted lifestyle choices have created havoc in the environment and emphasised on the importance of rethinking the way people look at the planet and dispose of waste in order to reverse these detrimental disposable habits.

“Recycling bins for paper, plastic and metal are commonplace nowadays, but it is very difficult to find bins in which the average consumer can recycle e-waste,” she observed, adding that Cinnamon Grand together with Think Green would will provide such channels at three easily accessible locations in the hotel and strive to inculcate a long-term habit for staff and even hotel patrons to recycle their e-waste.

Think Green Head of Marketing Sivahar Muthuramalingam described e-waste as Waste Elect-rical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) which are discarded or obsolete electrical or electronic devices. Muthuramalingam said that electronics such as mobile phones, computers, monitors and copy machines are made from valuable and reusable resources such as rare earth materials, precious metals, plastics and glass and such devices also contain hazardous and toxic materials, due to which they must be disposed of properly in order to prevent pollution and risks to public health.

Muthuramalingamsaid that electronics such as mobile phones, computers, monitors and copy machines are made from valuable and reusable resources such as rare earth materials, precious metals, plastics and glass and such devices also contain hazardous and toxic materials, due to which they must be disposed of properly in order to prevent pollution and risks to public health.

Electronics contain hazardous and toxic chemicals such as lead, cadmium and mercury and when disposed of in landfills, toxic chemicals seep into the ground, resulting in contaminated water and soil, endangering human life and other living beings.

The numbers are quite startling: About 50 million cell phones are replaced worldwide every month and only 10% are recycled. If just one million cell phones are recycled, it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions to an extent that is equivalent to taking more than 1,300 cars off the road for an entire year. According to Muthuramalingam, Think Green was the first entity in Sri Lanka to commence e-waste management services. The company has Central Environment Authority (CEA) approval and is also a UN Basel convention approved company to export e-waste (hazardous waste).

Thinks Green’s recycling facility has ISO 14001, ISO 9001 and OHSAS 18001 certification of its environmental, quality and safety management systems.