The Minister of Environment, the Chairman of Arab Industrialization, and the Governor of the New Valley sign a cooperation protocol in the field of integrated waste management

Dr. Yasmine Fouad, Minister of Environment, and Lieutenant General Abdel Moneim El-Terras, Chairman of the Arab Organization for Industrialization, and Major General Muhammad Salman Al-Zomlout, Governor of the New Valley, signed a cooperation protocol between the Ministry of Environment represented by the Waste Management Regulatory Authority, the Arab Industrialization Organization and the New Valley Governorate regarding cooperation in the field of Integrated management of waste management "Recycling palm waste to produce MDF wood" in the New Valley Governorate.

 

Dr. Yasmine Fouad, Minister of Environment, confirmed that the cooperation protocol comes within the framework of the Ministry of Environment’s role, represented by the Waste Management Regulatory Authority to support and develop the waste management system at the national level, and within the framework of the Waste Management Regulation Law No. 202 of 2020 issued in October 2020, which stipulates the functions of the Organizing waste management, including supporting investment opportunities in the field of integrated waste management, noting that the New Valley Governorate is characterized by the spread of date palm cultivation activity, and this activity results in the availability of palm waste with economic returns in the field of recycling.

 

The Minister of Environment added that the signing of the protocol today came after a study of the project over a period of more than a year and a half and the success of the experiments of sending date palm tree samples to one of the research centers in Germany through the Arab Organization for Industrialization to research and study the possibility of converting the date palm leaves in the governorate into multi-use wooden panels.

 

The Minister of Environment added that the protocol comes within the framework of the national strategy to benefit from agricultural waste, as work is being done to transform the environmental problems we face and create economic and investment opportunities from them.

 

The Minister of Environment praised the Arab Organization for Industrialization as a pioneer of the Egyptian industry, which had the lead in working on the idea of ​​the project, as it contributed from the beginning to the research part and to choose the most appropriate technologies used in this field that fit the Egyptian reality.

 

For his part, the "Terrace" stressed the implementation of the directives of President "Abdel Fattah El-Sisi" regarding achieving maximum benefit from palm products and waste, especially in light of the expected expansions in date palm cultivation in the New Valley Governorate.

 

The "Terrace" praised the cooperation with the Ministry of Environment and the New Valley Governorate for establishing and settling an integrated industrial and agro-industrial project in accordance with international quality standards, and making maximum use of palm products and waste.

 

Al-Terras also indicated that Arab Industrialization puts all its manufacturing energies and technological capabilities to accelerate the implementation rates of this important national project, in coordination with major German companies specialized in this field, especially after the success of the practical experience of manufacturing MDF panels from palm fronds, where one was assigned German companies specialized in implementing it on a quantity of palm waste (palm fronds) sent from the New Valley Governorate, and the manufacturing results and the test results were promising with success.

 

He added that it is planned to receive modern production lines in cooperation with major German companies to produce about 400,000 MDF boards with high quality palm fronds according to the European specification, adding that the project achieves great economic feasibility to meet the needs of the local market of MDF wood, in addition to Environmental benefits for the safe utilization and disposal of palm waste.

 

Under this protocol, the Ministry of Environment contributes to activities related to integrated waste management in the New Valley Governorate, and monitors, supervises and follows up on the implementation of the waste management work that is the subject of this protocol, in addition to providing technical advice, recommendations and technical support in the field of waste management, and assistance in setting up a system for collecting waste. Palm waste (palm fronds) to be transported to the proposed MDF plant in coordination with the governorate, which will undertake the implementation of this system.

 

The cooperation protocol includes the commitment of the governorate to allocate the land necessary for the establishment of integrated waste management activities, provide the necessary funding to implement the activities of integrated waste management, and work to complete the basic facilities of the project and extract the necessary licenses for it.

 

The Arab Organization for Industrialization is also preparing technical and economic studies to implement palm waste management activities in cooperation with one of the German companies providing technology in this field, providing appropriate technology in the field of palm waste management (palm fronds), investing in establishing the proposed plant, and developing training plans and transferring technology and expertise. For workers of the proposed plant in coordination with the Waste Management Regulatory Authority.