Mukono residents want operations of garbage recycling plant revived

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Residents in Mukono municipality have asked the authorities to revive the operations of the garbage recycling plant at Katikolo landfill.

The plant was established in 2010 at 600 Million Shillings funded by World Bank.

However, its operations stalled due to lack of funds. The waste plant was to be a central collection point for organic solid waste that can be converted into manure and fertilizers under the World Bank carbon trading project.

Residents say that the non-functional waste management plant emits a foul stench that pollutes the entire area and makes it non-conductive for human habitation.

The Katikolo site manager James Kigozi says the project targeted mainly the production of fertilizers but it lacked a market for the manure and could not meet the costs of paying the workers.

George William Ssemakula, a resident at Nabuti wants municipal authorities to revive operations of the recycling plant. He says that poor garbage management is compromising public health.

Statistics at the office of the Municipal Environment Officer indicate that over 270 tons of garbage are generated daily within Goma and Mukono central division but only 69 tons are collected.

Annet Sikyomu, a trader in Mukono central town says that residents and the business community risk contracting diseases such as cholera. She says that if the recycling plant is not put to use, the authorities should look for another garbage dumping site.

The Municipal Mayor Elisa Nkoyoyo appeals to residents conducting businesses in Mukono to buy litter bins for the temporary storage of on-site waste.

Several recycling plants that were constructed more than five years ago are non-functional. Some of the plants are in Hoima, Gulu, Mbale and Fort Portal.

In a report on solid waste management system compiled last year by Abdu Yusuf Abdulfatah, a researcher at Kampala International University Environment Department, the waste disposal system used in Mukono municipality is non-energy recovery which includes free open without any control or treatment posing threats to the dwellers.

He further indicates that such a waste system is discouraged since it facilitates breeding of vermin and pathogens and generation of noxious gasses leading to unbalance to the ecosystem and socio-economic losses.

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