By Taha Aouda
ISTANBUL, Jan 22 (KUNA) -- In an inventive method to encourage recycling and protect the environment, the Municipality of Istanbul launched an initiative whereby trash and waste could be exchanged with free public transportation tickets.
Through specialized ATM-like machines, people would insert trash in exchange for the tickets, head of IT for smart cities, a Municipality-affiliate, Mehmet Alyoruk told KUNA.
The official indicated that the initiative currently focused on metro public transportation and will include others as things progress.
The main focus of the initiative is to encourage recycling in the city especially among the younger generation, said Alyoruk, adding that plastic waste was the chief target of the plan due to its catastrophic impact on the environment.
Istanbul, with a population around 18 million people, produces around 17,000 tons of waste daily with only 6,000 being recycled.
Turkey is ranked 108 out of 180 countries in Environmental Performance Index (EPI).
The initiative in Istanbul aims at increasing recycling to about 35 percent within five years. (end) ta.gta