#Author: Er Arun Tamang ,Eleotronices Engieering NIT Sikkim India https://nitsikkim.ac . Panamanians generated 1.2 kilograms per day of waste, which on a national level is about 5,000 tons per day, or 1,830,000 tons per year. It is estimated that 74% of the population’s waste ends up in landfills. These figures
are based on the preparatory studies of the Spanish consultancy company INECO (Ingeniería y Economía del Transporte S.A.) which in 2017 elaborated the Panamanian Plan for Integrated Waste Management 2017 – 2027. The rest of the waste gets incinerated in an uncontrolled manner and/or is dumped into rivers and other ecosystems. Almost half of the collected garbage ends up in the Cerro Patacón landfill of Panama City. In Panama, the Ministry of Health (MINSA) is responsible for municipal waste policies. As part of the implementation of Law 51 of 2010xv, 10 years ago the government founded the National Waste Authority (AAUD). This entity is responsible for the administration, planning, operation and inspection of municipal, commercial, and industrial waste management as well as the landfills. Interestingly, the same organization is also responsible for waste collection in Panama City. AAUD faces difficulties to fulfil this double role. As a result, collection in Panama City has not seen any progress in the past years. The board of directors of AAUD is headed by the Minister of Health and the Director of the Sanitation Authority. In March 2018, a law on Zero Waste was published. This law provides an integrated waste management framework based on the concept of circular economy. The goals are to achieve the best economic, environmental and social use of waste and natural resources, to generate new job opportunities (inclusion of waste pickers) and to reduce pollution and impacts on health and the environment. It defines responsibilities for all actors (individuals, public and private sector) that produce, import, commercialize or consume products or deposit waste. It also creates a National Education Program to promote a Zero Waste Culture (3Rs). In October 2019, the Ministry of Environment launched the Electronic Waste Project in Panama (PREAL). The amount of 550,000 USD was reserved for its execution in the period 2019-2024 . The national government presented first versions of laws concerning used tires, collection of e-waste and recycling in mass events. In 2019, a law was presented concerning single use plastics, with the objective: “Regulating the Reduction and Progressive Replacement of Single-Use Plastics by 2021.
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