Biggest waste management factory to open next month in RAK

The mega factory will be using advanced technologies and state-of-the-art machinery to collect and sort all types of wastes.

The emirate is set to have its biggest waste management factory by January 2019, as part of efforts to achieve the national target of reducing untreated wastes by 75 per cent by 2021.
The mega factory, which is being built on an area of 25,000 square feet in Al Qussaidat, Ras Al Khaimah, will be using advanced technologies and state-of-the-art machinery to collect and sort all types of wastes, according to a senior official.
Ahmad Al Hammadi, director of the department of public works in RAK, said the factory is a big boost to the country's recycling sector and its efforts in reducing wastes according to international standards.
The factory's equipment can accurately sort all kinds of wastes and assemble them in lines that are connected to various pressure units designed to handle specific kinds of trash, Al Hammadi said.
Residents can soon expect a big fleet of waste collection vehicles roaming around their neighbourhoods, moving garbage to the factory up to 150 times a day.
"The wastes of southern areas are being moved to two separate assembly points; one in Shawka and another in Al Manei," Al Hammadi said. 
The new facility can sort out up to 500 tonnes of wastes daily and can further be expanded as necessary, he said.
"The latest waste management technologies, from air pressure to a large magnet that can separate metal items from waste and plastic stuff, have been adopted in this factory," Al Hammadi said.
First, garbage bags are opened, then wastes are sifted, separating unwanted materials from recyclable ones and organising them based on their size and type.
Built at a time when the emirate's population is growing, the facility is designed to efficiently manage the increasing volume of household waste, he said.
ahmedshaaban@khaleejtimes.com

• Ras Al Khaimah