Egypt’s Houses approves bill regulates waste management; Minister of Environment welcomes

CAIRO – 24 August 2020: Egypt’s House of Representatives approved the draft law that regulates waste management on Monday.

The law stipulates that any producer shall be responsible for dealing with the  waste of the company’s consumed products to recycle it.

25 percent of the mortgage tax revenues that given to every governorate shall be allocated for the waste management activities.

The law prohibited burning agricultural waste, dumping it in waterways or disposing of them in places rather than dumps designated for it.

Manufacturers would increase the percentage of recyclable inputs to limit rate of industrial waste.

The Article 29 of the law stipulates that it is impermissible to practice the activities of the integrated management of non-hazardous waste without obtaining a license. Illegal landfills should be closed nationwide in two years, the law provides.

He who deliberately violates the law’s provisions shall be punished by imprisonment for five years maximum. If the violations resulted in the injury of a person with a permanent disability, the violator shall be punished by 5 to 7 years in jail. The penalty shall be life imprisonment if the act results in the death of three or more persons.

He who releases dangerous materials or waste the territorial water or in Egypt’s exclusive economic zone shall be punished with life imprisonment and a fine of not less than LE 5 million and not more than LE25 million.

Minister of Environment Yasmine Fouad welcomed the Parliament approval, saying the law is a step towards eliminating the problem of the garbage and waste that has haunted the Egyptian streets.