By: Ugor Benedict 

The Society of Petroleum Engineers, University of Ibadan Student Chapter, in collaboration with Recycleedge, organized a recycle workshop on Saturday July, 20, 2024, held at the Petroleum Large Lecture Theatre.

The event featured a training session by the Executive Director/Co-founder of Recycleedge, Mr Victor Oluwatobi, on the theme “Recycle Right: Understanding the Process”, a Question & Answer session, a group case study, and a quiz competition.

Mr Victor, a recycling expert, stated that the aim of the workshop was to educate attendees on the complete process of recycling.

“You remember the last time we picked wastes around UI. We just gathered them and dumped them somewhere. We don’t know what happened to those wastes. That is why we are organizing a recycling workshop to help us to know how to recycle wastes,” he said.

Mr Victor defined recycling as a way of creating another product from a so-called waste. He also emphasized that recycling is a major contributor to environmental conservation, adding that it also helps reduce the cost of production directly from raw materials.

He explained the meaning of the three arrows in the recycling symbol, stating that the first arrow represents collection, the second, processing, and the third, manufacturing.

He also said that recycling can be either closed looped or open looped.

“A closed loop recycling uses a product to produce the same product, while an open loop uses a product to produce an entirely different product,” he explained.

Mr Victor went on to explain how his company recycles plastic, stating that materials are collected from surrounding and dump sites, after which they are sorted out to obtain quality products.

“Sorting is based on type, colour, removal of wraps and caps, and quality. A bailing machine is then used to compress the bottles and produce flakes, which are then washed through the hot and cold wash process,” Mr. Victor noted.

When asked about what happens to dirty and contaminated plastics after sorting out the clean ones, Mr Victor said dirty plastics will still be used but will undergo a more rigorous cleaning process.

On how to start a recycling company, he said one must first register with appropriate bodies to obtain a company license.

Mr Victor concluded the training by presenting a case study to test participants ability to sustain recycling operations by overcoming possible challenges. This was followed by an online quiz session.

Attendees of the event included the President of the Society of Petroleum Engineers, Lanlehin Habeeb; the Vice President, Okeke Miracle; the Public Relations Officer, Otubu Rukevwe; the Treasurer, Badmus Fatai; the Assistant General Secretary, Ejaide Ayodeji; the General Secretary, Abdulwasiu Ubaydah; members of the organization; and other non-members from various departments.