The Lagos Waste Management Authority has fixed a key road at the Olusosun Landfill in Ojota. This is part of efforts to improve waste disposal operations and address the pile-up of rubbish across the state.
Muyiwa Gbadegesin, the Managing Director of LAWMA, shared this news on Tuesday. He spoke during a visit to the repaired Road E and E2 platforms at the Olusosun Landfill.
He mentioned that ZoomLion Nigeria Limited worked on this project as part of their corporate social responsibility. This repair will make it easier to access the landfill and support ongoing waste management efforts in Lagos.
“We’re here today at the Olusosun Landfill. What has been achieved today is the repair of Road E and two of the platforms on a corporate social responsibility basis by ZoomLion Nigeria Limited.
“They are our partners constructing the transfer loading stations and material recovery facilities that will be operational in a few months,” he said.
Gbadegesin also cleared up some rumors. He said the Olusosun landfill is not closed. He explained that the state is gradually reducing operations while making more space for waste disposal.
“We announced that we were winding down activities, but the site has not been closed. What we’ve done here is reclaim a portion so that we can continue disposing of waste as we gradually phase out operations.
“This will also help us clear the waste backlog on our roads because it is not a good thing for us to have waste on the roads,” he said.
Gbadegesin pointed out that the waste management problems in Lagos come from not just access to disposal sites but also how residents throw away their waste. He noted that some residents do not pay their Private Sector Participant operators on time for waste collection.
“A lot of the challenge is also our behaviour as a people. If residents do not pay their PSP operators on time, how are they expected to buy diesel, maintain their trucks and pay their workers?” he said.
He added that the state government is putting money into transfer loading stations, material recovery facilities, waste-to-energy plants, and biogas plants to better waste management. This will also help with the growing population in Lagos.
On the issue of rubbish piling up on Lagos roads, Gbadegesin urged residents to practice good waste disposal habits.
“Lagos will be free from dirt when Lagosians decide that Lagos will be free from dirt. If everyone stops dumping refuse on the roadside and hands it over to their PSP operators, then we won’t have this problem.
“If you experience delays in waste collection, report it directly to LAWMA. Don’t bring your waste to the roadside. Once we all play our part, we will stop having waste on our roads,” he advised.
Olugbenga Adebola, the national president of the Association of Waste Managers of Nigeria, Lagos Branch, also spoke. He called the road repair a big boost for waste management in Lagos.
He said the fixed access road will make it easier to reach disposal sites and improve door-to-door waste collection.
“We are very happy, and we hope this will be sustained. The ongoing crisis has been largely about access to disposal sites, and I believe this will give us some leverage.
“Once the transfer loading station comes on stream, we can return to effective door-to-door waste collection.
“We also appreciate Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, ZoomLion Nigeria Limited, LAWMA and the Ministry of the Environment for this partnership.
“We want to assure Lagosians that with this development, there will be some level of improvement in door-to-door waste collection,” he said.
Drop your comment
No comments yet — be the first to drop the gist 👇