"This is not about some expensive, politically correct act of bunny hugging", said UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson as he called for a "green" Covid-19 recovery during a speech at a virtual global climate summit last April. For Britain and other major powers, it is a more difficult task than it seems, but it is of global importance. A recent report by the environmental NGO Greenpeace details the environmental impact of Britain's massive per-capita rate of plastic waste, which is second only to that of the US, and how its impact extends beyond Europe.
The speed at which new plastic is created far outpaces the UK's ability to recycle it. Instead, almost half of Britain's plastic waste is burnt, with a further 20 per cent ending up in landfill. Nineteen per cent of it is also exported – a practice that not only shoves environmental damage elsewhere, but also amplifies it.
Turkey was the largest recipient of exported British waste in 2020, receiving more than 200,000 tons. Under UK law, it is illegal to send waste abroad if it is not going to be recycled or incinerated to produce energy. But images of plastic from British supermarkets dumped or burning along Turkey's otherwise scenic Mediterranean coast imply that London is ignoring its own rules.
Waste management has the potential to become one of the first truly lucrative green industries
Importing waste is a lucrative practice for countries in need of the money. But without strategies to do so sustainably, it is costly in other ways: burning plastic endangers people’s health, and vast imports create a free-for-all in which organised crime gets a 21st-century stake in the garbage trade.
The industry's environmental impact stretches across the Middle East. One hundred and ten thousand tonnes of plastic waste rolls into the Mediterranean from Turkey each year. Egypt's rate is even higher, at 250,000 tonnes.
In an article for The National last year, Dr Nawal Al-Hosany, the UAE's permanent representative to the International Renewable Energy Agency, highlighted strategies to address the issue of waste. The UAE aims this year to divert 75 per cent of refuse from landfills towards energy production. This will work towards a target of using 50 per cent sustainable energy by 2050, up from 25 per cent today. The Emirates Waste to Energy Company in Sharjah, set to be completed this year, plans to process more than 300,000 tonnes of waste into enough electricity to power almost 30,000 homes. Similar schemes are taking place across the GCC. A model for "circular economies" will see waste turned into green energy, rather than simply being abandoned.
There is no boil-in-the-bag solution to the wider climate crisis. In a sea of challenges, waste management has the potential to become one of the first truly lucrative green industries. With that in mind, the image of British plastic burning along Turkey's coast is not just an international embarrassment, but a missed opportunity too.
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ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Ain Issa camp:
- Established in 2016
- Houses 13,309 people, 2,092 families, 62 per cent children
- Of the adult population, 49 per cent men, 51 per cent women (not including foreigners annexe)
- Most from Deir Ezzor and Raqqa
- 950 foreigners linked to ISIS and their families
- NGO Blumont runs camp management for the UN
- One of the nine official (UN recognised) camps in the region
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog
Favourite hobby: taking his rescue dog, Sally, for long walks.
Favourite book: anything by Stephen King, although he said the films rarely match the quality of the books
Favourite film: The Shawshank Redemption stands out as his favourite movie, a classic King novella
Favourite music: “I have a wide and varied music taste, so it would be unfair to pick a single song from blues to rock as a favourite"
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh289,000
SPECS
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Results:
6.30pm: Handicap (Turf) | US$175,000 2,410m | Winner: Bin Battuta, Christophe Soumillon (jockey), Saeed bin Suroor (trainer)
7.05pm: UAE 1000 Guineas Trial Conditions (Dirt) | $100,000 | 1,400m | Winner: Al Hayette, Fabrice Veron, Ismail Mohammed
7.40pm: Handicap (T) | $145,000 | 1,000m | Winner: Faatinah, Jim Crowley, David Hayes
8.15pm: Dubawi Stakes Group 3 (D) | $200,000 | 1,200m | Winner: Raven’s Corner, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar
8.50pm: Singspiel Stakes Group 3 (T) | $200,000 | 1,800m | Winner: Dream Castle, Christophe Soumillon, Saeed bin Suroor
9.25pm: Handicap (T) | $175,000 | 1,400m | Winner: Another Batt, Connor Beasley, George Scott
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
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