This combination of pictures created last month shows discarded face masks in public spaces around the world. More PPE has been found as litter across the globe. AFP
This combination of pictures created last month shows discarded face masks in public spaces around the world. More PPE has been found as litter across the globe. AFP
This combination of pictures created last month shows discarded face masks in public spaces around the world. More PPE has been found as litter across the globe. AFP
This combination of pictures created last month shows discarded face masks in public spaces around the world. More PPE has been found as litter across the globe. AFP

Covid-19 makes waste management even more critical


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One of the symbols of our battle with Covid-19 is the disposable face mask. At the beginning of July, some estimates showed that 129 billion face masks and 65 billion plastic gloves were being produced every month, according to the Environmental Science & Technology journal, to meet demand. Whether officially mandated or not, the thin plastic face coverings have become as ubiquitous as the people wearing them in public spaces – for their obvious, medically professed-health benefits.

But we did not expect to see them floating in our oceans, out-numbering and endangering our marine life. Yet that’s where they are ending up. Across the globe, our waters have become clogged up with these single-use, non-biodegradable materials carelessly thrown aside. Experts, for instance, are concerned that the beaches along the French Riviera will eventually house more face masks than jellyfish.

And conservationists in the UAE have warned that this worrying new trend has curtailed global recycling efforts and only exacerbated the problems caused by the 8 million tonnes of plastic that enter our oceans each year from countries all over the world.

Plastic bottles and other garbage wash up on a beach in the county of Cork in Ireland. Getty Images
Plastic bottles and other garbage wash up on a beach in the county of Cork in Ireland. Getty Images

In this context, the dialogue on effective recycling must be resumed. Governments, as well as the private and the public sector, all have a role to play in setting targets, raising awareness and overseeing a recycling landscape that not only reduces plastic waste, but can turn that waste into a useful by-product, such as energy, through hygienic methods of incineration.

Waste disposal is a huge challenge at the moment. There are up to 2 billion tonnes of municipal solid waste being produced globally every year, and up to 30 per cent of that waste is not being managed in a responsible manner, according to the World Bank.

With resources being finite amid this exacerbated ”throwaway culture”, finding ways to improve our circular economy is imperative. And, when we consider that generating energy from waste, whether for electricity or heat, is a truly viable option, there is an incentive to raise our waste management game.

By simply doing research on how we can produce energy from non-recyclable residual waste and simultaneously deal with the problems of large-scale waste and landfills, we will find that there are solutions already at our disposal.

Producing energy from collected landfill gas is one of the best ways to reduce the negative impacts of existing landfills on the environment and the people living nearby. As such, countries across the globe have begun recycling their garbage to produce energy to heat their homes and public buildings.

In the UAE, there is a concerted drive under way to pick up the pace in the waste recycling space. Today, we have one of the highest waste generation rates per capita in the world, with per capita municipal solid waste generation reaching around 1.8 kilograms, according to data from the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment. This puts us in a urgent position to drive the waste-to-energy conversation. The UAE has laid out a target to divert 75 per cent of the waste from its landfills by 2021 as a way of supporting the Energy Strategy 2050, which aims to increase the contribution of clean energy from 25 per cent to 50 per cent by 2050 and reduce carbon footprint of power generation by 70 per cent.

Furthermore, on the back of the Federal National Council passing a bill to punish illegal waste disposal in the nation in 2018, a number of waste-to-energy plants are either being planned or under way.

One such example is the Emirates Waste to Energy Company project, currently under construction in Sharjah. The result of a collaboration between two UAE pioneers in the waste and renewable energy space – Bee’ah and Masdar – the region’s first waste-to-energy plant is on track for completion by the end of 2021. Once open, the facility will process more than 300,000 tonnes of waste each year to generate around 30 megawatts of energy, a capacity to power up to 28,000 homes and displace almost 450,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions yearly.

Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, fourth from left, the former minister of Climate Change and Environment, during the multi-fuel waste to energy facility opening ceremony in Sharjah. Satish Kumar for The National
Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, fourth from left, the former minister of Climate Change and Environment, during the multi-fuel waste to energy facility opening ceremony in Sharjah. Satish Kumar for The National

Bee'ah also recently announced a novel idea for disused garbage landfill – to turn it into a solar-powered farm. Another first-of-its-kind for the region, the new solar farm project is planned for construction on 47 hectares of landfill in Sharjah, and which would see the emirate utilising a site of rubbish that would otherwise take years of remediation. Such innovative thinking is the key to optimising our rubbish.

Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi Power Corporation and its subsidiary Emirates Water and Electricity Company have an agreement with Tadweer to develop two waste-to-energy plants in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, which will aim to convert 1.5 million tonnes of municipal waste per year into energy and will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by around 2.5 million tonnes between them annually.

And in Dubai, a Dh2 billion waste-to-energy plant is under way in Al Warsan 2, which will be able to treat 2,000 metric tonnes every day, producing 60 megawatts of energy and, vitally, divert waste away from extant landfills to limit the methane being emitted.

Garbage bins waiting for the waste management truck to arrive at Khalifa City. Individual responsibility is key to effective waste management. Victor Besa / The National
Garbage bins waiting for the waste management truck to arrive at Khalifa City. Individual responsibility is key to effective waste management. Victor Besa / The National

There is plenty of exciting work happening in this space. But it's also important for us to place the potential of waste-to-energy in its proper context. We must manage waste effectively and appropriately. Deciding where we can innovate, and where we must dispose, recover, recycle and minimise its generation at source or prevent it is critical to building the infrastructure and technologies to make waste management a priority for our citizens, residents and municipal authorities.

But with projects in progress, and the circular economy mindset that is integral to the ethos of the UAE today, we are on the cusp of realising a powerful, state-of-the-art means of producing energy from an array of promising sources.

Dr Nawal Al-Hosany is a permanent representative of the UAE to the International Renewable Energy Agency

RESULTS

6.30pm: Emirates Holidays Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (Dirt) 1,900m
Winner: Lady Snazz, Richard Mullen (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).

7.05pm: Arabian Adventures Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Zhou Storm, Connor Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.

7.40pm: Emirates Skywards Handicap (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Rich And Famous, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.

8.15pm: Emirates Airline Conditions (TB) Dh 120,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Rio Angie, Sam Hitchcock, Doug Watson.

8.50pm: Emirates Sky Cargo (TB) Dh 92,500 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Kinver Edge, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.

9.15pm: Emirates.com (TB) Dh 95,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Firnas, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.

One in four Americans don't plan to retire

Nearly a quarter of Americans say they never plan to retire, according to a poll that suggests a disconnection between individuals' retirement plans and the realities of ageing in the workforce.

Experts say illness, injury, layoffs and caregiving responsibilities often force older workers to leave their jobs sooner than they'd like.

According to the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Centre for Public Affairs Research, 23 per cent of workers, including nearly two in 10 of those over 50, don't expect to stop working. Roughly another quarter of Americans say they will continue working beyond their 65th birthday.

According to government data, about one in five people 65 and older was working or actively looking for a job in June. The study surveyed 1,423 adults in February this year.

For many, money has a lot to do with the decision to keep working.

"The average retirement age that we see in the data has gone up a little bit, but it hasn't gone up that much," says Anqi Chen, assistant director of savings research at the Centre for Retirement Research at Boston College. "So people have to live in retirement much longer, and they may not have enough assets to support themselves in retirement."

When asked how financially comfortable they feel about retirement, 14 per cent of Americans under the age of 50 and 29 per cent over 50 say they feel extremely or very prepared, according to the poll. About another four in 10 older adults say they do feel somewhat prepared, while just about one-third feel unprepared. 

"One of the things about thinking about never retiring is that you didn't save a whole lot of money," says Ronni Bennett, 78, who was pushed out of her job as a New York City-based website editor at 63.

She searched for work in the immediate aftermath of her layoff, a process she describes as akin to "banging my head against a wall." Finding Manhattan too expensive without a steady stream of income, she eventually moved to Portland, Maine. A few years later, she moved again, to Lake Oswego, Oregon. "Sometimes I fantasise that if I win the lottery, I'd go back to New York," says Ms Bennett.

 

Williams at Wimbledon

Venus Williams - 5 titles (2000, 2001, 2005, 2007 and 2008)

Serena Williams - 7 titles (2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2015 and 2016)

'The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey'

Rating: 3/5

Directors: Ramin Bahrani, Debbie Allen, Hanelle Culpepper, Guillermo Navarro

Writers: Walter Mosley

Stars: Samuel L Jackson, Dominique Fishback, Walton Goggins

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Greatest Royal Rumble results

John Cena pinned Triple H in a singles match

Cedric Alexander retained the WWE Cruiserweight title against Kalisto

Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt win the Raw Tag Team titles against Cesaro and Sheamus

Jeff Hardy retained the United States title against Jinder Mahal

Bludgeon Brothers retain the SmackDown Tag Team titles against the Usos

Seth Rollins retains the Intercontinental title against The Miz, Finn Balor and Samoa Joe

AJ Styles remains WWE World Heavyweight champion after he and Shinsuke Nakamura are both counted out

The Undertaker beats Rusev in a casket match

Brock Lesnar retains the WWE Universal title against Roman Reigns in a steel cage match

Braun Strowman won the 50-man Royal Rumble by eliminating Big Cass last

Buy farm-fresh food

The UAE is stepping up its game when it comes to platforms for local farms to show off and sell their produce.

In Dubai, visit Emirati Farmers Souq at The Pointe every Saturday from 8am to 2pm, which has produce from Al Ammar Farm, Omar Al Katri Farm, Hikarivege Vegetables, Rashed Farms and Al Khaleej Honey Trading, among others. 

In Sharjah, the Aljada residential community will launch a new outdoor farmers’ market every Friday starting this weekend. Manbat will be held from 3pm to 8pm, and will host 30 farmers, local home-grown entrepreneurs and food stalls from the teams behind Badia Farms; Emirates Hydroponics Farms; Modern Organic Farm; Revolution Real; Astraea Farms; and Al Khaleej Food. 

In Abu Dhabi, order farm produce from Food Crowd, an online grocery platform that supplies fresh and organic ingredients directly from farms such as Emirates Bio Farm, TFC, Armela Farms and mother company Al Dahra. 

David Haye record

Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4

The specs: 2018 Dodge Durango SRT

Price, base / as tested: Dh259,000

Engine: 6.4-litre V8

Power: 475hp @ 6,000rpm

Torque: 640Nm @ 4,300rpm

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

Fuel consumption, combined: 7.7L / 100km

What is the FNC?

The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
It has 40 members, eight of whom are women. The members represent the UAE population through each of the emirates. Abu Dhabi and Dubai have eight members each, Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah six, and Ajman, Fujairah and Umm Al Quwain have four.
They bring Emirati issues to the council for debate and put those concerns to ministers summoned for questioning. 
The FNC’s main functions include passing, amending or rejecting federal draft laws, discussing international treaties and agreements, and offering recommendations on general subjects raised during sessions.
Federal draft laws must first pass through the FNC for recommendations when members can amend the laws to suit the needs of citizens. The draft laws are then forwarded to the Cabinet for consideration and approval. 
Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
 

Key 2013/14 UAE Motorsport dates

October 4: Round One of Rotax Max Challenge, Al Ain (karting)

October 1: 1 Round One of the inaugural UAE Desert Championship (rally)

November 1-3: Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (Formula One)

November 28-30: Dubai International Rally

January 9-11: 24Hrs of Dubai (Touring Cars / Endurance)

March 21: Round 11 of Rotax Max Challenge, Muscat, Oman (karting)

April 4-10: Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge (Endurance)

The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Power: 510hp at 9,000rpm
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Price: From Dh801,800
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas

Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa

Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong

Rating: 3/5

RIVER%20SPIRIT
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Day 1, Dubai Test: At a glance

Moment of the day Sadeera Samarawickrama set pulses racing with his strokeplay on his introduction to Test cricket. It reached a feverish peak when he stepped down the wicket and launched Yasir Shah, who many regard as the world’s leading spinner, back over his head for six. No matter that he was out soon after: it felt as though the future had arrived.

Stat of the day - 5 The last time Sri Lanka played a Test in Dubai – they won here in 2013 – they had four players in their XI who were known as wicketkeepers. This time they have gone one better. Each of Dinesh Chandimal, Kaushal Silva, Samarawickrama, Kusal Mendis, and Niroshan Dickwella – the nominated gloveman here – can keep wicket.

The verdict Sri Lanka want to make history by becoming the first team to beat Pakistan in a full Test series in the UAE. They could not have made a better start, first by winning the toss, then by scoring freely on an easy-paced pitch. The fact Yasir Shah found some turn on Day 1, too, will have interested their own spin bowlers.