The solid waste handling ‘proverb’

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The solid Waste Management sector is in crisis as it has been neglected. The Nairobi City Council is responsible for garbage collection services but due to mismanagement and corruption the resources are no longer available and this essential service has been left to the private sector. Of the many private operators there are one or two who are responsible in their operations but the vast majority of " garbage collectors" simply throw the garbage where they believe it will have the least chance of them being caught by the City Inspectorate, and if by chance they are caught all they do is pay a bribe.

Nairobi is estimated to produce 2,400 tonnes of garbage per day translating to 876,000 tonnes annually.

The local Bins, like all other operators is licensed by the Nairobi City Council to dispose off collected garbage at the Dandora dumping site and adheres to this requirement strictly. However, the site itself and the management of the disposal of the garbage are inadequate for today's needs; a problem that needs to be urgently addressed.

The Dandora Dump site

Mismanagement of these wastes typically results in pollution of the natural environment and may pose substantial danger to public health and welfare. A survey conducted on the residents around the dumping site revealed that there are serious complaints about smoke, smell, and broken glasses. Respiratory and stomach problems among children are common in the nearby clinics and were cited by the people interviewed. School children passing through the dumpsite often picked objects which    were dangerous to their health.

The Dandora dumpsite is littered with all types of wastes from hospital wastes, manufacturing, industry wastes, paper and biodegradable material. The 32-acre Dandora dump site serves as the city’s main refuse disposal site and is increasingly being seen as a threat to the environment and residents of the surrounding estates. Past studies involving analysis of soil samples from locations adjacent to the dump site have revealed high levels of heavy metals pollution from lead, mercury, cadmium, copper and chromium. A medical analysis of the residents and children living and schooling in the neighbourhood showed the population is at high risk of metal pollutants infection. According to a research conducted by United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) in 2007 over 2000 tons of garbage are delivered to the site daily and found that half of 328 children tested round the site had lead concentrations in their blood exceeding the normal content.

Garbage can be worked out in three major ways which is composed of three R’s; R-Reduce, R-Re-use and R-Recycle. The residents living around the Dandora dumping site have embarked on certain mechanisms of handling the waste to ensure that it does not accumulate. This includes sorting of the waste by getting those they can sell like; metals, plastic bottles, bones etc to be recycled.

Residents sort through garbage to find recyclable items to sell at the Dandora Municipal Dumping site

Solid waste management problems in Nairobi are largely a result of lack of a waste management policy and framework that would aim at improving the standards, efficiency and coverage of waste. There is therefore the need for the Nairobi city council and the private sector should step up to provide solid waste handling resources, effect waste management policies and frameworks to handle waste management.