COVER STORY
From trash to ash
and protecting mother nature
S
outh Africa’s landfill sites are not only fast approaching full capacity, but the piling-up of waste is causing tremendous land and air pollution. A 2020 study has also shown that communities who live close to landfill sites (within 5 km) are at a 41% higher risk of developing asthma, an 18% higher risk of developing tuberculosis, a 25% higher chance of having diabetes, and an 8% greater chance of suffering from depression. However, with government’s renewed focus on transitioning towards a circular economy – with the revision of the National Waste Management Strategy (2020) and approving key actions that will contribute to climate change, emissions reduction and waste minimisation – many businesses are looking for more sustainable ways to deal with their waste. For the longest time, there seemed to be no feasible solution in sight but Somerset Group’s Asher promises to deliver not only a sustainable waste management solution but also a costeffective one. Somerset Group is a multifaceted company with a special focus on international trade and infrastructure projects. It specialises in all things renewable energy, water and lighting. Since its inception in 2012, the business has grown into a multidisciplinary organisation that has developed extensive skills and resources in green technology.
South Africans generate roughly 108 million tonnes of waste per year. Only 10% is recycled and the rest ends up deposited across our landfill sites. ReSource speaks to Henri Thompson, group executive chairman at the Somerset Group, about the company’s introduction of a revolutionar y technology to address this.
This 2 t solar Asher in Cambodia is used to clear dumpsites
6
FEBRUARY 2021
|
ReSource
The Asher
Upon signing an agreement with Keelinx SDN BHD, the authorised representative of Pamarai (the Asher’s global exclusive distributor, trademark owner and manufacturing partner) for Africa, Somerset was tasked with bringing Pamarai’s proprietary Asher technology to local and regional markets. The Asher is a zero-waste machine that can quite literally ‘bake’ waste into multipurpose ash without polluting the environment – effectively solving the problems associated with landfills and incinerators. Thompson says Somerset went through various legal frameworks to ensure that the Asher was legal and within the specifications of the countries it’s expected to operate in, largely because it is designed to comply with US EPA standards. In Malaysia, the Asher’s birth country, it has received its MyHIJAU Mark certificate, a green label awarded by the Malaysian Green Technology Corporation, a government agency under the Ministry of Environment and Water of Malaysia. The green label was
