DEALING WITH THE WASTE MENACE (MARCH 13)

WASTE management has become a very big headache for our administrators, both at the local and central government levels.
For some time now administrators in the cities and urban areas have been spending a large percentage of their budgets on waste disposal, with few results.
On the other hand, rural dwellers have devised very innovative ways of waste management, including burying and burning the garbage to protect the environment.
In the past, the environment was wholesome in the rural communities because environmental regulations were enforced. Traditional authorities complemented the efforts of local councils by co-operating with sanitary inspectors to enforce compliance with environmental bye-laws.
The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) became so helpless in dealing with the waste crisis a few years ago that it advocated a ban on the booming trade in sachet (“pure”) water. However, it was unable to build the necessary public opinion in support of its action.
But the debate will not die down, in view of the growing challenge that plastic waste poses to all district, municipal and metropolitan assemblies.
That is why the DAILY GRAPHIC endorses the position taken by the Vice-President, Mr John Mahama, when he told a national forum on environmental sanitation in Accra on Tuesday that “the time has come for us to take a decision on plastic waste and a ban on plastic is not out of the question”.
While we contend with solid waste disposal countrywide, residents of Accra also have to deal with the nuisance caused by the emptying of human waste into the Atlantic Ocean.
And to address the problem, the AMA, with support from the African Development Bank (AfDB), plans to begin rehabilitation works on the Human Waste Treatment Plant near the Korle Lagoon in Accra.
The disposal of the liquid waste into the sea near James Town has earned the area the name Lavender Hill because of the powerful stench emanating from the area.
The waste disposal menace has become a burden like the proverbial Santrofi bird — if you pick it, you are in for trouble; if you let it go, you rue your loss! And now is the time for action.
A few years ago, Blowplast Company Limited, a private company, established a recycling plant near Kpone and engaged agents throughout the country to supply it with plastic waste for a fee.
In spite of challenges with raw materials, although the city of Accra finds it difficult to dispose of plastic waste, the management of the company keeps the dream alive.
In other countries, the authorities have enforced other initiatives, such as “polluter pays more”, to such an extent that local administrations have enough resources to deal with the challenge.
The recycling of waste into energy or compost for agriculture is big business that can be properly harnessed to support the employment and wealth creation agenda of the government.
There is money in waste management and the government must offer the necessary incentives to businesses engaged in the industry to get returns on their investments while motivating other investors to venture into the sector.
This will help to control waste in the system and reduce the health risks associated with waste mismanagement, as well as update the country’s business profile.