A look at Uganda’s garbage burden

Rising above Nelson Mandela Stadium Namboole is a monstrous heap of rubbish that towers over communities near the stadium.

A strong stench from the garbage attracts buzzing flies and birds that are seen rolling over polythene bags, plastics, decomposing food items, and other materials.

The heap keeps growing every day is a result of Kira Town Council authorities designating it as a new dumping site for over two years.

Mr Geoffrey Kato, the Kira town planner said dumping is a problem in the whole of Wakiso District, and it is not unique to Kira Town Council.
Town authorities for a long time have struggled to properly dispose of trash from industries and homesteads. Many factories for example, have ended up dumping untreated effluents directly into Lake Victoria.

In towns like Jinja and Kampala, environmentalists have accused some industries of polluting the lake, which affects its aquatic animals and humans who consume the water.

For example, in 2010, Jinja Town mayor, Mr Baswale Kezaala and the National Water and Sewerage corporation, intervened and closed a leather factory that they accused of pouring untreated effluents into the Lake Victoria.

Jinja has a dumping site in Masese near Lake Victoria, Bushenyi with Kabagarame, Mbarara with a site at Kenkombe, Mbale at Industrial area, Gulu at Laroo and Fort Portal at Nyabukara,. However, they are also flooded and the situation is much worse in smaller towns with meager budgets.

What’s being done
This is not to say all authorities are doing nothing to combat littering in cities. In Kampala, KCCA law enforcers have intensified policing.
On March 28 last year, a one Ronald Bunjingo appeared before Grade One Magistrate Julius Borore at City Hall Court and pleaded guilty to being a nuisance when he urinated in a public place (traffic lights in Wandegeya). He was arrested by KCCA law enforcers. But that is a drop in the ocean.

KCCA spokesperson, Mr Peter Kauju in an interview with Daily Monitor said the Authority currently collects about 3200 tonnes of garbage monthly up from 14,00 tonnes since its inception in 2012.

He said there are ongoing negotiations with International Finance Corporation (IFC), to enable the Authority access funds to collect more garbage and make biogas from it.

The IFC is an international financial institution that offers investment, advisory, and asset management services to cheer private sector development especially in developing countries.

“There are plans to get value out of the garbage. We have arrangements with IFC to enable us collect more garbage and turn them into biogas,” Mr Kauju said.

Until then, the onus is on private citizens to dispose of their garbage responsibly.

For Ms Pheona Namuyaba, a resident of Kyebando when asked how she disposes of her garbage, she said.

“Where I live in Kyebando, it is mandatory for everyone staying on those flats to pay Shs10, 000. The money is used to pay the private company which comes to pick up the garbage every Friday morning,” Namuyaba said.

That kind of dumping however, according to environmentalist Mr Allan Kalangi, the Sustainability School Programme under the National Association of Professional Environmentalists, is hazardous to the environment both in short and long run.

He cites the ugly picture created by the garbage, acting as a breeding place for flies, mosquitoes and other germs that can lead to a possible cholera outbreak, blocking water channels that leads to floods and causing permanent soil bareness when polythene bags are buried underneath the soil, as some of the dangers of uncoordinated dumping.

“Even collected garbage should not be burned anyhow. There should be specific places for disposal and burning because when it rains, the residues are taken in the drainages which end up in water bodies,” Mr Kalangi said urging that when the water is contaminated, both humans and other aquatic animals are affected.

Mr Kalangi further faults the National Environment Management Authority (Nema) for looking on as garbage is littered in various places, including wetlands.

Dr Tom Okurut denies such allegations saying Nema has cancelled a number of titles in the wetlands and is on course to fulfilling its mandate.

“I have never authorised any development in the wetlands, even the contagious Katoogo wetland, I cancelled that title,” Dr Okurut told Daily Monitor recently while opening the first regional Nema offices in Masindi.

Mr Basil Mugonola, a senior lecturer in Agribusiness at Gulu University concurs with Kalangi’s assertions on the effects of dumping and adds that the agriculture sector is more affected when garbage is not regulated especially the use of polythene bags.

On July 11, 2009, Ms Syda Bbumba, then minister of Finance, during her budget speech, imposed a ban on plastic bags “for conveyance of goods and liquid in order to protect our environment” and an excise duty of 120 per cent was also imposed on other plastic materials and a moratorium of six months was given to the public as transition period.

Ms Bbumba’s ban however did not materialise as Ugandans have instead intensified the use of these polythene bags and all beverage companies are using more of plastics than the glasses.

Mr Mugonola adds that majority of people do not sort decomposable materials from decomposing ones urging that people should be sensitised to start sorting the materials before taking them to dumping sites.

Minister of Environment says:

The State Minister for Environment, Ms Flavia Nabugere Munaba told Daily Monitor that her ministry has recognised turning garbage into manure as the most effective way of solving garbage burden and that and all municipalities have been directed to turn their garbage into fertilisers and sell to the local farmers.

“We are encouraging all municipalities that produce a lot of garbage to turn them into fertilizers and briquettes (garbage charcoal)” Ms Munaba said.
“We intend to give more cranes to cut the cost of people who clean the towns,” Ms Munaba added.

Ms Munaba also said the government is covering out applying other interventions like sensitising communities, on the dangers of littering, funding municipalities to start up garbage dumping sites and turning the garbage into manure.

However, most peasantry farming, a characteristic of Uganda agriculture sector does not depend on manure for farming retarding the growth of manure turning companies’ growth.

To acquire a sustainable solution to garbage burden in the country, deliberate effects in creating awareness of the dangers of uncoordinated dumping on the environment, providing more facilities and funding to local governments, intensifying collecting and turning garbage into manure and enabling farmers access it cheaply should be undertaken immediately.

Another effective way should be communities scheduling days to clean their locations.

The national Waste Management policy, stipulates that:
“A person who owns or controls a facility or premises which generate waste shall minimise the waste generated by adopting the following cleaner production methods - (a)improvement of production processes through - (i) conserving raw materials and energy; (ii) eliminating the use of toxic raw materials; (iii) reducing toxic emissions and wastes; (b)monitoring the product cycle from beginning to end by identifying and eliminating potential negative impacts of the product; (ii) enabling the recovery and reuse of the product where possible; (iii) reclamation and recycling; (c) incorporating environmental concerns in the design and disposal of a product,” however, such guidelines are rarely followed.

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