Edo floats new waste management scheme

…to certify waste managers

The Edo State Government has said a new waste management scheme will be launched, in April, to monitor the activities of waste managers across the state.

Commissioner for Environment and Sustainability, Hon. Reginald Okun, disclosed this in a chat with journalists in Benin City, the Edo State capital.

Okun said the new waste management scheme will ensure effective monitoring of activities of waste managers and ensure that the people are better served by the service providers, noting, “Waste managers in the state will be required to register with the state’s waste management board.”

Warning that the state will no longer tolerate the practice where operators go about their activities without following the set guidelines, Okun said, “With the new waste management scheme in place, before anyone goes about claiming to be a waste manager in the state, he or she must be certified by the state’s waste management board.”

He added that those who fail to register with the board will be considered as criminals and will be prosecuted, adding, “Those who also patronise these illegal waste managers will also be prosecuted. Individuals and companies are also required to have waste managers in place for evacuation of wastes.”

Okun urged Edo people to support the state government in her effort to control and manage waste effectively. He said, “People must ensure they patronise waste managers who are duly registered. We will continue to focus more effort in sensitising people to develop the right attitude to waste management.”

On the speculation that harmful chemicals are disposed indiscriminately in rivers, Okun said, “The state government monitors the activities of companies, which dispose harmful chemicals, and ensures that such chemicals are disposed adequately and are done in such a way that people’s lives are not threatened.”

 “A section of the state’s waste management board is in place to monitor liquid evacuation. It ensures that companies who discharge harmful chemicals evacuate them properly without posing threat on the environment.”

Okun added the state government intends to work with local government councils to ensure effective waste management in major areas and markets across the 18 local councils in the state.