International waste management conference debuts in China

Growing Asia Pacific Waste and Environment Alliance (APWEA) participates in WasteMET Asia 2016 to drive more sustainability in Asia.

WasteMET Asia 2016, a two-day international waste management conference, will make its debut this November in China with the aim of strengthening industry players’ capabilities and tackling the country’s waste management challenges and needs.

Organised by SingEx Exhibitions and Waste Management & Recycling Association of Singapore (WMRAS), as well as co-organised by Guangdong Environmental Sanitation Association (GDESA), the event will be held at the China Import and Export Fair Complex, Guangzhou, China, from 24 to 25 November 2016.

Supported by the Asia Pacific Waste and Environment Alliance (APWEA), this platform will also see a Memorandum of Understanding signing ceremony undertaken to welcome Australia, New Zealand and Korea to the alliance. The non-governmental alliance was formed in the year 2015 to drive more growth and efforts for greater sustainability in the waste management and recycling industry in Asia.

Themed as “Innovate and Collaborate for a Greener Tomorrow”, this event into its fifth year in 2016, will be graced by distinguished guests namely Mr Xiao Jia Bao, Director of China Association of Urban Environmental Sanitation, Mr Du Ting, Deputy Director, Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of Guangdong Province, China, and Mr Chua Teng Hoe, Consul-General of the Republic of Singapore in Guangzhou.

“The WasteMET Asia brand was first launched in 2012 to provide global waste management professionals a dedicated platform to leverage on innovative technologies and improve their go-to-market strategies, enabling them to propel their businesses further and accelerating the emerging industry.

Well into its fifth year, the brand has grown from strength to strength and it is an opportune time to introduce this to China where rapid urbanisation has increased the country’s waste management challenges and needs.

Through this leading Asia wastemanagement platform, we hope that business leaders, policymakers, technology developers, solution providers and young entrepreneurs from the waste management and recycling industry will glean insights, explore and forge new business partnerships,” said Mr Aloysius Arlando, Chief Executive Officer, SingEx Holdings Pte. Ltd.

Through a series of initiatives including the conference, business matching programme, networking sessions and site visits, the event offers opportunities for businesses to foster new partnerships and explore leading technologies.

The exclusive business matching programme will pair WasteMET Asia delegates and speakers together, as well as IE expo Guangzhou exhibitors, to facilitate relevant connections to allow all to maximise their networking opportunities at the event.

Hosting over 200 international waste management professionals, experts and government agencies from 11 countries, WasteMET Asia 2016 will facilitate knowledge exchange and discussions over two days through a line-up of local and international speakers. The two-day conference will focus on regional growth and opportunities for the waste management industry and latest technologies in waste sorting, recycling and waste to energy. Some of the key presentations are:

• “China’s Vision of the Waste Management Sector by 2020” by Mr Xiao Jia Bao, Director, China Association of Urban Environmental Sanitation;
• “Successful Operating Strategies in Southern China” by Zhou Xiao Hua, General Manager, Veolia China;
• “Critical Considerations for Waste to Energy Development in New and Established Markets” by Dr Chindarat Taylor, Founder and Director of Resource Efficiency Pathway and Vice President, Solid Waste Association of Thailand (SWAT);
• “Adopting Innovative and Smart Technologies for Better Waste Management – Global” by Hermann Koller, Managing Director, International Solid Waste Association (ISWA)

This event is supported by strategic partners from APWEA, namely Guangdong Environmental Sanitation Association (GDESA), Indonesia Solid Waste Association (InSWA), National Solid Waste Association of India (NSWAI), Solid Waste Management Association of the Philippines (SWAPP), Waste Management Association of Malaysia (WMAM) and Waste Management & Recycling Association of Singapore (WMRAS). In addition, Waste Management Association of Australia (WMAA), China Association of Urban Environmental Sanitation (CAUES), Hong Kong Waste Management Association (HKWMA), Waste Management Institute of New Zealand Inc. (WasteMINZ), and Korea Waste Association (KWA) will be joining the alliance officially during the event. WasteMET Asia 2016 is also supported by other industry associations including International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) and Hong Kong-based Business Environment Council.

“APWEA was formed in 2015 by six waste associations from Guangzhou/China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore. The Alliance and the WasteMET Asia platform serve to boost efforts for greater sustainability as well as promote trade and commerce in the region. This year, the representatives of four more waste associations from China, Hong Kong SAR, New Zealand and South Korea will gather in Guangzhou to sign the APWEA Memorandum of Understanding to join the Alliance and to take the region’s waste management and recycling sector to greater heights,” said Ms. Melissa Tan, Chairman, APWEA and WMRAS.

As co-organiser, GDESA will help to reinforce the local government’s desire to offer green development opportunities for international investors as part of the 13th Five-Year Plan (FYP) – a blueprint for China’s economic and social development from 2016 to 2020 that was approved on March 16, 2016.

“The 13th Five-Year Plan in China’s environmental and sanitation industry has great potential for growth, both locally and internationally. This year, we will be collaborating with SingEx Exhibitions and WMRAS to launch the WasteMET Asia 2016 conference in Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province. We look forward to sharing innovative technology with our Asia counterparts to explore investment opportunities, establish new business partnerships, and jointly promote trade exchanges and collaboration between Guangdong businesses and the Asia-Pacific region,” said Ms. Chen Shankun, Chairman, GDESA.

This event will be co-located with IE expo Guangzhou 2016, an international trade fair for environmental technology solutions: water, waste, air and soil, in China Import and Export Fair Complex. For more information, please visit www.wastemet.asia..

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About SingEx Exhibitions

SingEx Exhibitions is a subsidiary of SingEx Holdings, and is wholly owned by Singapore’s investment company, Temasek Holdings. The company harnesses insights and its strategic networks to organise and manage a series of trade exhibitions and conferences in various industries including automotive, education, environment, e-commerce and logistics, technology, healthcare and lifestyle. These events aim to connect businesses in Asia and globally, and facilitate business matching opportunities and knowledge sharing. For more information, log on to www.singex.com.

About Waste Management & Recycling Association of Singapore (WMRAS)

Established on 8th of August 2001, the Waste Management and Recycling Association of Singapore (WMRAS) aims to professionalise and develop a leading waste management and recycling industry in Asia. With the aim to promote business networking opportunities and best practices amongst members, the Association has been organising activities such as talks, mission trips, conferences, exhibitions and members get together sessions etc.

To foster information exchange, the Association has organised regular dialogue sessions with relevant authorities to keep members updated on the regulatory and policies developments. Meetings with the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, National Environment Agency, Economic Development Board, International Enterprise Singapore and SPRING Singapore, have allowed members to feedback their concerns and discuss how the public and private sectors could work together to address these needs. For more information, log on to www.wmras.org.sg.

About Guangdong Environmental Sanitation Association (GDESA)

Guangdong Environmental Sanitation Association was established as a business unit in charge of the Guangdong Provincial Housing and Urban Construction Department in 1990, housing the province’s environmental health industry professionals, non-profit social organizations, from the environment around the province and in the health sector and sanitation-related management, research, design, education, counselling, job services, facilities construction and operation of enterprises, equipment manufacturing and sales units and associations related with sanitation around the law voluntarily.

The association’s mission is to abide by the constitution, laws, regulations, implementation of government environmental health guidelines and policies; safeguard legitimate rights of members, reflecting members’ desire to provide services and information to members; assist government departments to strengthen the industry, strict self-discipline, improve the service quality; foster and standardize the environmental health service market; to strengthen extensive contacts within the industry and environmental sanitation, government departments, and society; promote the healthy development of the province’s environmental health. For more information, log on to www.gd-esa.com.

Media Contact:

SingEx Exhibitions Pte Ltd

Ms Wu Jiayi

Manager, Events Marketing

DID: +65 6403 2203

Email: jiayi.wu@singex.com