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… restricts scavengers to central dumpsite.
(Kwara State Commissioner for Environment, Hajia Nafisat Buge and some members of the Environmental Taskforce.)
A three hundred member environmental taskforce has been inaugurated in Kwara State.
The taskforce is mandated to sensitize and monitor compliance with the newly adopted environmental strategies developed by the State Government to achieve its vision of a Clean and Green Kwara.
At the inauguration, the Commissioner for Environment, Hajia Nafisat Buge stated that indiscriminate dumping of refuse poses serious health risk to residents hence the need for an urgent and proactive measure to curb it.
“Of course, indiscriminate dumping of refuse is a general phenomenon that requires urgent attention, most especially in Ilorin metropolis. The only solution to eradicate it is to aggressively commence a rethinking of sustainable waste management by the government and to also sensitize the people on the dangers inherent in dumping refuse indiscriminately.”
According to Hajia Buge, under the new strategies, it is illegal to dump refuse into water channels, by the roadsides, or display wares on drainages.
She said that public waste bins initially placed by the roadsides would be removed and positioned at other locations to ensure free flow of traffic, households would pay a monthly token to the already engaged thirty-eight waste collectors, while registered scavengers would only operate on the State dumpsite at Sokoto-Aiyekale.
The Commissioner for Environment also explained that anyone who violates the rules would be duly prosecuted and when found guilty, fined, jailed for six months, or sentenced to community service.
The fines, according to her, are fifty thousand naira for an individual, shop owner, one hundred thousand naira while, a corporate organisation, would pay from two hundred and fifty thousand naira upwards.
“the implementation and enforcement of the new strategies will be very strict. All these are strategies we have put in place to revitalize waste management in the state. With your support, we shall sustain a cleaner Kwara that will be healthy for residents and attract investors to our dear state.”
The Commissioner emphasized the need for residents to be sensitized on the effect of improper waste disposal on the environment to gain their support for Government’s efforts to rid Kwara of environmental pollution.
“It is crucial that members of the public cooperate with the government and its agencies to find a lasting solution to this problem. This will help forestall the outbreak of diseases, especially cholera, which is already ravaging some states in the country.”
She assured residents that public waste bins would be evacuated every twenty-four hour.
Responding to a question on open defecation, Hajia Buge affirmed that the State Government would soon begin construction of more public toilets in areas of need, as well as expand drainages to check flooding in parts of the State.
The environmental taskforce which would operate on a twenty-four basis, comprises officials of the State Ministry of Environment, community volunteers, members of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and, Vigilante Groups.
By Rasheedat Iliyas
