Behavioral change in Curaçao International Airport facilities team: significant increase in recycling ♻️
By Tijmen de Vries & Jill Chin – Green Phenix, Willemstad, October 2023.
Despite the presence of separate collection bins in the terminals of Curaçao International Airport, until recently all plastic bottles and aluminum cans ended up in one large container together with the other waste, with final destination landfill Malpais. However, a change has been visible for a few months now.
Every week, about 35 kilograms of plastic and aluminum is properly being collected for recycling: “Our staff is proud to assist in keeping the recyclables separate and to contribute to a cleaner island”, says Gracia de Freitas, Operational Manager of Total Services at the airport. Green Phenix, an organization that stimulates a circular economy in Curaçao, visited Mrs. Luchinella Haynes – Quality/Contract Officer at Curaçao Airport Partners – and Mrs. Gracia de Freitas to hear from them how the required behavioral change of the facility staff has been achieved and how recycling fits within the vision of the airport.
Why did CAP start recycling?
Haynes: “Just like everyone else, anywhere around the world, we as an airport also have a responsibility to make a positive contribution towards the environment. Diminishing the production of waste is an important part of that. Besides the ethical responsibility, we have to adhere to certain sustainability guidelines for airports to obtain international and local certifications. In Curaçao, for instance, there is a local certification from the Curaçao Business Council for Sustainable Development, in which recycling is also included.”
De Freitas: “Another reason to take action was the need we observed at the airport. In the first half of 2023, some 770.000 passengers passed through the terminals of Curaçao International Airport and a lot of them have a plastic bottle or buy a can. We see that with many passengers, mainly Europeans, there is a need for a recycling bin because people do not want to throw their plastic bottles away in the general waste. This was another aspect that encouraged us to take action.”
In which phase is CAP with its recycling project?
Haynes: “We started our recycling initiative about two years ago, but that was mostly behind the scenes. The first phase entailed placing recycling bins at the offices and instructing our employees on how to use these bins. After successful implementation in the offices, we expanded to the Jet Centre and the Fire Station. The Jet Centre is where the private flights depart from. Recently, we also included the departure and arrival halls in the recycling project. The next step is to also involve the stakeholders/concessionaires, which depends on the willingness to take part.”
De Freitas: “It is also good to mention that we are currently only recycling plastic and aluminum cans, but we hope to expand soon to other materials such as cardboard and paper.”
A recurring problem in waste separation is ‘wish-cycling’. People often hope that everything can be recycled and throw non-recyclable items in the recycling bin. It can also happen that people are in a hurry, do not pay attention, or are not interested in recycling and just throw their waste in a random bin. This makes the recycling process more complicated for recycling companies. How do CAP and Total Services make sure that only the correct materials reach the recycling companies?
De Freitas: “CAP has invested in bins with clear signs that indicate which materials should be put in which bin. On both the front and the top, where the opening is located, there is the name of the material indicated with a matching visual icon.”
But there will still be people that do not throw their trash and recyclables in the correct bins.
De Freitas: “Indeed. Luckily our employees are so enthusiastic about the project that they put the incorrectly disposed items in the correct bin and keep all recyclables separate. Thanks to these employees we save a lot of recyclable products from a one-way route to the landfill.”
That is fantastic. How did you motivate the personnel to separate waste so well?
Haynes: “Previously, the majority of the staff was not aware of the importance of recycling. That is why the separately collected recyclables still went to the landfill, together with the regular waste. We, the environmental committee of CAP, then decided to inform our employees of the importance of recycling through an awareness campaign by way of presentations, emails, and messages in a WhatsApp group. In addition, along with the Supervisor(s) of Total Services, I visited the facility employees during their work to provide them with an explanation whilst in action.”
De Freitas: “As managers of Total Services, we also visited our employees on several occasions to coach them on the job and explain why recycling is an important aspect of their work. In addition, separating waste has been added to the daily checklist so that staff are reminded of waste separation during every shift. Moreover, many of our staff see the airport as their second home and have a sense of ownership over the public space. They feel happy when the airport is clean and the waste is processed properly. The information we have offered them, the sense of pride and the mentality of not being afraid to get your hands dirty, which characterizes our team, makes a recipe that leads to great results.”
Previously posted on www.future-islands.org
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