The residents of Roches-Noires will meet on Saturday, September 19 during a community awareness and cleaning activity aimed at raising awareness of plastic pollution, and encouraging greater community participation in waste management and recycling. This activity is part of the project From Plastic to Progress: Roches-Noires Residents Lead Community Collection and Recycling for Local Impact, a community initiative implemented by Reef Conservation, in partnership with the Forces Vives de Roches-Noires and with the support of the village council. This event will also take place on the eve of World Cleanup Day, celebrated worldwide on September 20.
Planned from May 2026 to February 2027, the project aims to give residents the means to play an active role in reducing plastic pollution through the community collection, sorting and recycling of plastic bottles. As part of this initiative, a dedicated collection point will be set up within the village. Training sessions will also focus on responsible waste management, the identification and sorting of different types of plastic, as well as the impacts of plastic pollution on coastal and marine ecosystems.
The initiative also aims to demonstrate the potential of solutions based on the circular economy. The plastic bottles collected will be sent to local recycling partners, including Precious Plastic Mauritius, where they can be transformed into useful products. This approach makes it possible to give a new value to plastic waste while reducing the risk of their dispersion in the environment.
Beyond its local impact, the Roches-Noires initiative is also a pilot project designed to generate lessons and good practices that can contribute to the implementation of similar plastic collection initiatives by communities across the island. By bringing together residents, community organizations and local partners, the project aims to demonstrate how collective action can contribute to cleaner communities and healthier marine ecosystems.
The project is supported by the IslandPlas project, funded by The Coca-Cola Foundation and implemented by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as part of the Great Blue Wall.IslandPlas is a regional program implemented in seven African island states to combat the leakage of plastics into the environment, promoting circular economy solutions, strengthening plastic collection and recycling systems, and supporting innovative community initiatives.
