The Recycle Organics Program has launched a new project focusing on equipping the government of Maldives with enhanced information and methodologies for estimating detrimental emissions originating from the waste sector, leading to improved conditions for revising and reporting their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
Funded by the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), the Center for Clean Air Policy (CCAP) and ImplementaSur will provide technical assistance to the Maldives’ Ministry of Environment to overcome the existing data limitations in the waste sector for informed decision-making and to assess Short-Lived Climate Pollutants (SLCPs) and other harmful GHG emissions.
The project complements initiatives CCAC promoted in the past, such as Maldives’ National Air Pollution Action Plan developed in 2019 as part of the Supporting National Action & Planning Initiative.
“The support we are providing builds on the Recycle Organics Program’s rich experience in Latin America and the Caribbean,” said ImplementaSur Director Gerardo Canales. “By gaining better information and using improved methods to calculate harmful emissions, including SLCPs and GHG emissions, authorities in the Maldives can make more informed decisions and take effective action to reduce them, ultimately addressing the critical 1.5°C challenge.”
The Maldives’ unique geographic and environmental characteristics make it highly vulnerable to climate change and the impacts of emissions from the waste sector. As an island nation in the Indian Ocean, it faces rising sea levels, coastal erosion and an increase in extreme weather events due to climate change. In this context, the project will develop local GHG and SLCP emission factors for the waste sector and calculate emissions accordingly, while building the capacity in the public sector to update these calculations with more data collected in the future.
The project, which runs until May 2024, involves several beneficiaries and key stakeholders with specific shared responsibilities related to waste management and environmental protection. “Active participation from all stakeholders, including government agencies, waste management professionals, service providers, local communities and NGOs, are essential for implementing comprehensive waste management strategies,” said Environmental Consultant at ImplementaSur, Sofía Martínez. “By working together, the Maldives government and project participants can make significant progress in improving their waste sector data to achieve efficient waste management, reducing pollution, preserving natural resources and safeguarding the well-being of the Maldivian population for current and future generations.”
Maldives has become one of the first countries outside the Latin America and the Caribbean region to receive support from the Program, joining Fiji, Samoa and Togo.