Waste operators seek door- to- door collection

• Lagos builds sanitary landfill in Epe
To resolve the lingering waste crisis in Lagos and return the state as one of the cleanest in the country, Private Sector Participation (PSP) operators under the aegis of Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria (AWMN) have call for the enforcement of government policy of door-to- door collection.
 
The enforcement of the policy, they said, will tackle the waste problem at the point of generation, which is acknowledged international best practice.The chairman of the body, Oladipo Egbeyemi disclosed this while addressing newsmen shortly after the association meeting in Lagos.

Lamenting that the current distributed bins across the streets and high ways without adequate provision for evacuation has increased the number of black spots in the metropolis, he urged the Lagos state government to ensure that all existing dump sites are better accessible at all times.

According to the association, there is need to provide sustainable enforcement for non-compliance to house to house disposal and non payment.The PSP operators, who said they were proud of being responsible for making Lagos a clean state but express sadness to see waste return to their beloved Lagos.
 
They stressed their commitment towards an amicable legal resolution with Government and collaborate with all stakeholders to not only restore Lagos to her once glorious clean state of old but to actualise the Cleaner Lagos initiative.

Meanwhile, Lagos State Commissioner, for the Environment, Mr. Babatunde Durosinmi-Etti has said that the Sanitary Landfill currently being built in Epe is in steady progress.

The Commissioner said this during a media tour of the Landfill site in Epe.He said that the landfill, being a critical aspect of the waste management value chain, was accorded the deserved priority by the Lagos State Government as it had concessioned the 880,000 square metre landfill to Visionscape Sanitation Solutions to deliver the construction of weighing areas and road ways, “leachate” collection ponds and sediment pond as well as material recovery facilities among others.

He said the new facility would ensure the protection of public health and the local environment as well as the global environment, while providing an efficient and effective final disposal option for waste generated in the State.
 
He said that the landfill was a component of the Cleaner Lagos Initiative (CLI) which is a holistic waste management programme aimed at revitalizing the entire Solid Waste Management sector to have far-reaching benefits and multiplier effects for the State.
 
The Commissioner stressed that the Lagos State Government was committed to providing a sustainable and functional environment that would ensure development and prosperity.