By GNA
Reporter
Accra, Oct. 1, GNA – The operators of the
Kpone Landfill Site and the Tema Metropolitan Assembly have been called upon to
properly manage the landfill site to avoid any outbreak of epidemic in the
area.
Ms Cecilia Abena Dapaah, the Minister of Sanitation
and Water Resources made the call when she paid a working visit to the facility
and expressed worry over the insanitary conditions at the site, particularly
the foul stench from the water that leached out of the waste at the site.
This was in a statement signed by Mr Nelson
Kofi Akatey, the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry and copied to the
Ghana News Agency on Monday.
It said the Minister was accompanied by her
two Deputies, Mr Michael Y. Gyato, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Krachie
East and Mr Patrick Yaw Boamah, MP for Okaikwei Central, Mr Joseph Obeng-Poku,
the Acting Chief Director and some other Directors of the Ministry.
The statement said the visit was for the
Minister and her entourage to acquaint themselves with the operations of the
landfill site due to several complaints made by community members in the Kpone
Katamanso Municipality.
The people have complained about the
inconveniences caused by unbearable stench and leachate from the site,
especially during the rainy season.
The statement said during the visit, it came
out that fumigation at the site to control pests and vectors, which had not
been done for the past three months by the Assembly could cause public health
hazard in the nearby communities.
It said the entourage noted the broken down of
the weighbridge since February 2018 and as a result, the quantity of waste
received at the site was based on estimation while inadequate landfill
equipment at the site was hampering the effective and efficient operation of
the facility.
The Tema Sanitary Landfill site, which is the
only engineered landfill facility in the Greater Accra Region was inaugurated
in January, 2013, and was designed to receive 500 tonnes of refuse per day.
However, due to inadequate number of final
disposal facilities within the Greater Accra Metropolitan Area, close to 1,000
tonnes of refuse is dumped daily at the site and that it is estimated that the
landfill site would be full in the next six months as a result of the high
volume of waste it is currently receiving.
The statement said in view of the current
situation at the site, the Ministry was currently going through the process of
constructing additional cells to prolong the life span of the facility.
“Records available indicate that the Greater
Accra Metropolitan Area alone generates over 3,000 tonnes of waste daily, out
of which the Tema Sanitary Landfill receives one-third,” it said.
The statement said the facility was managed
under a management contract by a private service provider with Tema
Metropolitan Assembly and operates 24 hours from Monday to Saturday.
GNA