A Young Eco Warrior In Cameroon Makes Boats From Waste Plastic Bottles

A young man from the Douala region of Cameroon has found a unique way to recycle the plastic waste by using the plastic bottles to make a boat and called it ‘EcoBoat’.

As we are all aware the pace of urbanisation has touched heights of mechanical perfection, but what it has left behind is an environment degraded by human waste. In recent years, environmental deterioration through plastic waste has seen a rise. Non-biodegradable plastic wastes clogging the streets and floating on the water bodies are adding toxins to the ecosystem. The lives breathing in the toxic ecosystem is facing fatal consequences, especially wildlife and marine life. According to a report by The Economist, from the 1950s to 2018, 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic waste has been produced worldwide, out of which only nine percent has been recycled and 12 percent incinerated. The rest is accumulated in the landfills or dumped into oceans. It has been further estimated that by 2050, the plastic waste production will be doubled and there will be more plastics than fishes in the water bodies. Is there no solution to the threat that plastic pollution is posing to nature?

A young environmentalist comes with a unique idea

While there is a need for collective effort, there are single hands using innovative minds to tackle the issue. A young mind from Cameroon has come up with a new way to recycle the plastic waste by using the plastic bottles to make a boat and called it ‘EcoBoat’. According to The Truth Theory Ismaël Essome Ebone was inspired to make the EcoBoats when he saw the plastic wastes floating in the floodwaters during a storm in 2011. While Cameroon is known as an economic hub, the urbanisation and economic development has rapidly increased waste production, especially the plastic wastes. In order to derive a solution and to preserve the natural abundance, the young environmentalist started collecting the littered bottles to give shape to his idea of canoe made of plastic bottles. To test its durability, Ebone waited till the next storm when he successfully rowed the EcoBoat through the flooding water. People of his locality were astonished and he even received appreciation from them.

“There is a real lack of canoes for fishing here. Many young people like fishing but procuring a boat is very expensive. A wooden canoe costs up to 150 to 750 Euros. We can promote and use the EcoBoats in simple fishing activities and encourage young people to get into fishing industries.”

PC: weflve.com

Also Read: Water Pollution: Why We Must Consider This Part Of The Water Crisis

How does EcoBoat support the economy of Douala Region

Encouraged by the success of EcoBoat, Ebone built up confidence and invested his money in setting up a non-profit charity organisation, called Madiba & Nature, that is dedicated to collect plastic wastes across the localities in Cameroon and recycling it to build boats for ecotourism and fishermen.

PC: Google News Network

Since fishing is the main occupation of the region, to have a sustainable economy, Ebone aims at facilitating the fishermen through the EcoBoats which are economical and easily available. In an interview telecasted by WION, Ebone said, “There is a real lack of canoes for fishing here. Many young people like fishing but procuring a boat is very expensive. A wooden canoe costs up to 150 to 750 Euros. We can promote and use the EcoBoats in simple fishing activities and encourage young people to get into fishing industries.” Besides, Ebone believes, it will also be a tourist attraction, further augmenting the economy of the Douala region.

Also Read: #Ecowarriors: Meet Shagun Singh And Her Geeli Mitti Farms

The extended idea of EcoBin

The initiative has shown remarkable results and recently the organisation has also installed EcoBins for the different purposes of collecting, sorting and recycling the waste materials.

“The EcoBin makes it easier to collect plastic bottles in a smart way and avoid polluting rivers and the ocean in Kribi and Douala. From plastic waste to EcoBoat and EcoBin, the revolution is on the way.” read the Facebook Page of the organisation.

Encouraged by the success of EcoBoat, Ebone built up confidence and invested his money in setting up a non-profit charity organisation, called Madiba & Nature, that is dedicated to collect plastic wastes across the localities in Cameroon and recycling it to build boats for ecotourism and fishermen.

Watch the interview with WION here,

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Also Read: A Store Introduces Embarrassing Plastic Bags To Check Plastic Pollution!

Picture Credit: Aljazeera.com

Rudrani Kumari is an intern with SheThePeople.TV