Volume 13, Issue 2  •  Spring 2005

SWANA, ISWA Partner with Worldbank to Offer Tsunami Relief

Since the tsunami disaster occurred in southeast Asia in January of 2005, The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) and the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) have worked to arrange a partnership with the World Bank to offer technical assistance in waste management towards the efforts to assess, clean up, and restore affected areas in the region. The World Bank has requested a select list of individual members of SWANA willing to travel and work on Assessment Teams as an initial step, possibly requiring other work as well.

 SWANA has contacted its Landfill, Special Waste, and Landfill Gas Management Technical Division members to encourage them to apply to participate in the effort. Based on current knowledge, waste management experts would be needed on two- to four-week assignments in any of the affected countries, performing waste management assessments in conjunction with other World Bank Assessment Teams already in the region.

John H. Skinner, Ph.D., SWANA's Executive Director and CEO, stated, "Our hearts go out to everyone affected by this enormous disaster. With their expertise in professional waste management and their experience in dealing with the aftermath and debris cleanup of other major disaster events, our members will be able to contribute positively to the effort to clean up and rebuild the affected areas. SWANA is proud to be a part of this effort."

SWANA, the leading professional association in the solid waste management field, serves over 7,000 members and thousands more industry professionals with technical conferences, certifications, publications and a large offering of technical training courses.

For information on how to get involved in this effort, visit www.SWANA.org to download a PDF document with more information.

Submitted by Lori Scozzafava, Deputy Executive Director, SWANA