Plastic, paper, or general waste? You might soon need to sort out your trash for recycling, and here’s why.

Qatari authorities will distribute waste containers to every household in the country within the next five years, in a bold push for recycling.

The initiative, which aims to promote waste segregation at the source, is part of a broader programme by the Ministry of Municipality to increase recycling and support a circular economy.

According to Muqbil Madhour Al Shammari, Director of the General Cleanliness Department, the distribution of trash cans is set to begin in June of this year, starting in Doha before expanding to the rest of the country within the next two years.

The programme seeks to educate citizens on proper waste disposal practices and provide collection vehicles for sorted waste.

How will it work?

The waste containers will come in two types, and the aim of the programme is to promote responsible waste management while reducing the amount of waste that ends up in landfills.

“Grey container will be for food waste (organic waste) and blue container for recyclable materials. The trash cans will be of different sizes as per the need and will be placed outside the homes,” Al Shammari explained.

According to the expert, recycling factories now boast state-of-the-art equipment and devices that make segregating recyclable materials a breeze.

“In the beginning, only two containers will be provided because it is easy to handle for companies collecting the wastes and the households,” he said.

“We might think to provide a container for each recyclable material when we will be ready to do so, such as required vehicles and staff with enough knowledge of recyclable materials.”

To spread the word about this initiative, the department is launching an awareness campaign in multiple languages to ensure that as many people as possible get the message.

“A team from the department will be assigned to communicate with those handling waste at homes, educating them on how to use the trash cans properly. With intensified awareness campaigns, we are pretty sure to influence behaviour of people convincing them to make their contribution in the initiative,” he said.

He went on to explain that there are many benefits to sorting waste at the source, including economic, environmental, and health benefits.