It has set itself the goal of developing and implementing a concept, as water bodies worldwide can be freed from plastic waste, but also oil and pollutants.

In the multi-stage concept of the “marine litter cleanup”, plastic waste is collected by special refuse collection vessels and then recycled or converted back into oil. From a ton of plastic waste, approximately 900 liters of oil could be recovered.

In addition, the association is involved in the field of oil purification, microplastics, research, education and documentation on marine littering, both nationally and internationally, in order to achieve a change in the behavior of people with regard to (plastic) waste in the medium to long term.

COMPED director, Mr. CHAU Kim Heng, is working newly as the Country Project Coordinator for OEOO. As both Organizations are focussing on the environment, OEOO and COMPED have agreed to implement the project “Plastic waste clean-up from the water surfaces in Cambodia”, to participate in protecting our earth and oceans from plastic waste.

The Project is active in Battambang since end of 2018, and in Phnom Penh since early 2021. Each Team of 4 staffs is led by a Project Manager in order to achieve the annual goals. Mr CHAU Kim Heng coordinates both Teams, is in charge of the financial aspects and, as the main OEOO representative in Cambodia he is the leading contact person for OEOO Germany as well as the main interlocutor for all partners such as local authorities, eventual partners, financial supporters...

The long-term goal is to clean-up the entire Mekong and its tributaries in Cambodia. For this purpose, OEOO is working with the partner NGO COMPED as well as friends and supporters on site and Mr Detlef Gutjahr from Germany to develop a suitable concept. This could then become a cleaning and recycling solution for the whole of Asia, adapted to the respective region.

In Battambang the OEOO Team is supported by the SAB Team when possible and during special awareness raising events.

In Phnom Penh, the teachers from the Somersault Kindergarten participate to punctual actions.

Battambang Team supported by members of the SAB Team and Mr CHAU Kim Heng

After 3 months of groundwork preparations, having determined the different clean-up locations, bought the required tools and having recruited the necessary staff, OEOO Phnom Penh started its clean-up operations on March 01, 2021.

Before the clean-up could actually start, the Team had to build and setup the infrastructure for the waste separation and the plastic cleaning operations.

The focus being put on plastic waste, all the collected trash is systematically separated in different categories and, often, the plastic items need to be washed.

Phnom Penh Team cleaning the Tonle Basac shores.

For the first quarter 2020 the OEOO Team, in Battambang, composed of 5 members in total, managed to collect 29,615.83 Kg of waste, from which 1,106.88 Kg of plastic bags and bottles, in or on the shores of the Stung Sangke River.

For its first month of clean-up activities, in March 2021, the young OEOO Team from Phnom Penh managed to collect 3,289.20 Kg of waste out of which 814.40 Kg of plastic waste.

Follow us for more updates in the latest news..

After waste separation, the plastic items will be washed by hand.