Darjeeling: The Himalayan Cleanup (THC) campaign, an annual event of Integrated Mountain Initiative (IMI) and Zero Waste Himalaya (ZWH), kicked off on May 25 across the Indian Himalayan states with multiple cleanups taking place on the first day. THC is the biggest movement against plastic pollution in the mountains.
The campaign brings together mountain people concerned about the plastic crisis in the mountains and to raise their voices against plastic pollution. The cleanup consists of a waste and brand audit in which participants segregate the trash to understand the different types of plastic waste and also conduct an audit of the top polluting brands. In Darjeeling, there were also multiple cleanups led by ZWH with partners DLR Prerna and other organisations such as Flostate, Mukh Band Kaam Shuru, Assembly of God Church School, St Josephs’ College, West Point School, Camelia School and others.
On May 25, students of partnering schools went around town, including the iconic Darjeeling Mall, collecting plastic waste, following which a waste audit was held.
As many as 30 youth volunteers of the Trinity Yuwa Jhund and Singsha Youth Club joined forces and conducted a comprehensive cleanup at the iconic Jorepokhari, the famous tourist spot, located 19 km away from Darjeeling. Waste audits and brand audits were also conducted to gain insight into the composition of the waste and identify the primary sources of pollution in the area.
The waste audit informs waste managers for an improved waste management system. The campaign centres around demanding plastic polluters to be responsible for their plastic packaging and products and for stringent implementation of extended producer responsibility in the mountains. Initiated in 2018, this is the 6th year of THC and more than 40,000 volunteers from various organisations and institutions have been part of the campaign so far.
Similar cleanup drives were held in Sikkim and Ladakh also. “The campaign shall go on till June 5 with more than 300 cleanups being conducted by various groups across the mountain states. The waste and brand audit data shall be compiled by IMI and ZWH to name the top plastic polluters of the mountains and demand for extended producer responsibility to be implemented in the mountains,” stated Roshan Rai, member, ZWH.