Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/736806
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 9 OCTOBER 2016 16 JEANELLE MIFSUD AN entrepreneur behind a Maltese initiative that aims at creating green jobs locally and abroad using recy- cled clothes, has declined to divulge details about the work he carries out for the benefit of developing countries. ElectroWaste's managing direc- tor Brian Cardona has declined to explain how his clothes donation service works, while actively pro- moting it amongst several local councils. ReFab Malta, a textile-recycling project launched in November 2011, is supposedly meant to "re- duce the pressure on the earth" and increase economic growth in developing countries. But when MaltaToday invited Cardona to ex- plain the process and the beneficial effects of his project, he suddenly became reluctant to go into much detail. "The project provides comple- mentary collection of unwanted clothes. After pick-up, the clothes are then sorted by quality. Items which are still in good condition are packaged and shipped off to be sold in third world countries, namely Tunisia, India and the region of South Africa," Cardona said. However, when it comes to items which are not in good condition, the ReFab Facebook page has stat- ed that these are thrown out. "We chose these countries be- cause they require the clothes items as well as the business that this project brings in," Cardona added. However, when asked to elaborate further about who the items are sold to, and what is done to help the people in these countries, Cardona's answers turned short and vague. "We sell the clothes to peo- ple in these countries in order to create green jobs. They buy the clothes by weight, and then resell them to the public at very low pric- es," he said. "The reason why we don't just do- nate them is because if we did, peo- ple would just use them and that would be the end of it. There would be no contribution." This year, ReFab also launched clothes banks in particular locali- ties. The banks are blue contain- ers, similar in shape to post boxes, situated in different parts of Malta, including Balzan, Qormi, Naxxar, Mqabba, Zebbug, Birkirkara, San Gwann, Hamrun, St Paul's Bay, St Julian's, Ghajnsielem, Marsalforn, Sannat, Nadur and Victoria, Gozo. Pictures of the banks posted on the ReFab Facebook page clearly show that there is no information in the area about the banks other than a list of what can be dropped off. Cardona added that through this project, the load on the environ- ment's virgin resources was being lightened. "This project reduces 400,000kg of refuse from landfills a year," he said. The environmental factor seems to be what attracted local councils to collaborate in this project, es- pecially with the latest initiative of clothes banks. "I heard about ReFab during an annual general meeting when Brian gave a speech about his project. We thought it was a good idea so we decided to collaborate. Our aim was to find another use for the fabric that comes from unwanted clothes," Mqabba mayor Char- lene Zammit said, explaining how Mqabba was the first locality to provide this service. "As a locality we had organised a collection of unwanted clothes before and it had gone down well. We were then approached by Re- Fab with the idea of a clothes bank and after discussing it internally, we decided to hop on," Zebbug mayor Sarah Agius said. San Gwann executive secretary Kurt Guillaumier explained that when the local council had or- ganised a similar initiative once a month independently, it resulted that it was not economically vi- able nor did the council have the space to hold the clothes. "When ReFab approached us with a writ- ten proposal, the deputy mayor held a meeting and decided to pro- ceed," he said, mentioning that San Gwann currently has four clothes banks. "I am not aware that the merits of what happens after collec- tion was discussed." "When discussing with Mr Car- dona, we didn't really talk about what would happen to the clothes. We know that, according to his website, they are sent to other countries," a spokesperson for the News LNG tanker set to arrive in Malta today TIM DIACONO THE tanker which will be provid- ing liquefied natural gas to the new power station at Delimara is due to arrive in Malta today. Electrogas Malta, the consorti- um behind the power station, said that the Armada LNG Mediter- rana will initially be anchored in an offshore location south-east of Malta known as the Hurd's Bank and will be bunkering there over- night. The vessel will then notify the authorities of the Port of Mar- saxlokk about a suitable window to proceed to the pilot station on Monday and then enter the bay for sea trials, before temporarily departing the port for a few days to "carry out further familiariza- tion and security tests". The procedure will be coordi- nated by the port authorities, the Electrogas consortium that has been entrusted with the operation of the power station and the Ma- laysian oil field services firm Bumi Armada that has provided the consortium with the tanker. The tanker has a gross tonnage of 125,000 tonnes and is desig- nated as a Tanker – Hazard A (Major) vessel type. It was built by Bumi Armada at Keppel Ship- yards in Singapore in a process that involved 1.5 million working hours. According to the Office of the Prime Minister, the conversion job has been lauded by experts who explained that the FSU has the highest levels of security standards and will provide a tem- porary, yet reliable, supply of gas. The new gas-fired power station was originally envisaged to be completed in March 2015, but fol- lowing delays, then energy minis- ter Konrad Mizzi had said that the gas plant would be delayed by 15 months and be completed in June 2016. However, a delay in the conver- sion of the LNG tanker meant that the second deadline had to be missed. The government has stated that the LNG tanker would be used for a limited time until Malta has its gas pipeline with Italy in place. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has said that the country had been in a desperate need for a reform in the energy sector when his gov- ernment took over in 2013. "This will be the project which will not only complete the turna- round of Malta's energy sector, but which will be also ensuring that our electricity prices remain low and sustainable; that our elec- tricity supply, at the periphery of the European continent, remains secure, and which meets the ever- growing electricity demand which reflects an ever-growing and strong Maltese economy," Muscat said during a sail-away ceremony of the tanker in Singapore in Au- gust. However, the Nationalist Party has warned that the tanker will come with health and safety prob- lems and has frequently dubbed it a "monument of corruption". Yesterday, the PN filed a com- plaint with the Broadcasting Au- thority over a promotional video of the LNG tanker that is being aired on TVM. "The national broadcaster is air- ing a political advert to defend this monument of corruption. This advert is not only politically controversial, but contains lies that are intended to deceive the public about the tanker that Jo- seph Muscat, Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri will be docking only a few metres away from a town in which thousands of Mal- tese families live and work," PN MP Clyde Puli said in a statement. The Armada LNG Mediterrana has a capacity of around 125,000 cubic metres of liquefied natural gas Entrepreneur reluctant to divulge philanthropic effects of recycling project Donated clothes are being shipped to developing countries for resale, not donated cause they require the clothes items merits of what happens after collec- tion was discussed." dona, we didn't really talk about what would happen to the clothes. We know that, according to his website, they are sent to other countries," a spokesperson for the