BHARATPUR, APRIL 20

A PET recycling facility capable of processing green plastic bottles has come into operation in Jagannath Chowk, Bharatpur Metropolitan City-4. Established under Project CAP (Collaborative Approach for Preventing Plastic Leakages in Rivers of Nepal), the plant can process colored plastic bottles previously considered non-recyclable domestically, according to Creasion Ventures Inc. Pvt. Ltd.

Built at a cost of around Rs 13 million, the facility is currently operating at 30 percent capacity in the test phase and has employed 19 people. It is expected to become fully functional within a month and provide employment to around 35 people, with the number likely to rise to 45–50 once the products are ready for export, the facility said.

The factory has been set up on one bigha of leased land for a period of 10 years. It collects plastic bottles from across the country, with a special focus on bottles discarded in rivers. With nearly 20,000 tons of plastic flowing into rivers annually, the venture seeks to reduce riverine pollution at the source and promote a circular economy. The initiative has also engaged members of the indegineous Bote community, who are now earning extra income by collecting plastic waste from rivers and selling it to the factory. Bote are river people who primarily live in Bharatpur, Chitwan. Their major profession is primarily fishing-related.

The formal inauguration of the facility was held last Friday. The event was organised by CREASION Nepal, the implementing partner of Project CAP in Nepal, and attended by national and international representatives. Among those present were Director General of SACEP Norbu Wangchuk, UNOPS Nepal Country Director Komal Karki, and Task leader of PLEASE Project and Senior Environmental Specialist at the World Bank Joseph Ese Akpokodje, among others.

"Plastic pollution is a major crisis in South Asia, and through this project, we have been able to contribute to the solution. This is a significant initiative, and we hope Nepal will continue to carry it forward, contribute further, and ensure its sustainability. The funds have been very well spent in Nepal," Akpokodje said.

CREASION Nepal President Aanand Mishra, who chaired the event, said "This was a project that once seemed impossible, yet we completed it within a limited timeframe. It was made possible through collective effort. Moving forward, we plan to expand the factory's capacity beyond PET recycling."

The factory uses a step-by-step process to recycle the collected bottles. According to Lila Paudel, Environment Safeguarding Officer at CREASION Ventures, the bottles are first collected and the collected bottles are stacked and crushed into cube shapes to make them easier to transport before being sent to the factory.

There, they are placed on conveyors which will remove the labels and caps. At the next station, six workers sort out leftover labels and other waste before the bottles are shredded into flakes. These are then cleaned using both cold and hot washers.

As many of the collected bottles come from landfill sites, the washing process is thorough. The water used is treated and reused, and any leftover waste is compressed into cake-like cubes and sent to landfills. The factory claims to follow all environmental safety measures, including limiting noise levels within government standards.

The facility produces three main products-plastic flakes, granules, and green straps. The green straps, made from already-coloured bottles, are described as hardy and durable. Previously imported, these are now being produced locally for the first time. In addition to recycling green PET bottles - a first in Nepal - the plant ensures that labels and caps are also sent to relevant recycling facilities, making the entire process environmentally responsible.

Project CAP is funded by the PLEASE (Plastic Free Rivers and Seas for South Asia) Project and supported by the South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP), the World Bank, and UNOPS.