The Mwakirunge dumpsite in Kisauni constituency, Mombasa county, remains a nightmare to the people living around it four years after it was introduced.
In 2018, the county government declared the 60 acres in Mwakirunge ward a dumping site after consultation with the community through public participation.
In the forum, the county government promised to build a perimeter wall to maintain the cleanliness of the area and for the good health of residents.
Today, the promise is yet to be fulfilled even as the dumpsite endangers residents' health.
Contance Shivasti, a resident, said they have been denied their rights to a clean environment.
She said before the dumpsite was transferred from Kibarani to Mwakirunge, they were promised a lot of development, including construction of roads, health centres, public school and enforcement of security, as well as fencing of the area for the security of their children.
“After giving us development promises, we were surprised to see tracks bringing waste before anything was done. This has brought us health challenges, especially to our children,” she said.
She said the site has led to truancy.
“Our children used to go to school as usual but when the dumpsite came, class attendance dropped. Instead, they started going to look for plastics to sell. Education in this area has really gone down,” she said.
Joyce Ndaro, a resident who has her business in the dumpsite area, said dreams of young children who no longer go to school were shuttered.
“We want the dumpsite to be removed. Our children are not going to school because of this place, and these are the same people who could have become leaders of the next generation,” she said.
Ndaro said there is no proper way of disposing of waste, nor anyone to control how the disposal should be done.
It is smoky during the sunny season, pest-filled when it rains.
“My children are now coughing non-stop due to this smoke. We are always in and out of hospital, treating different diseases,” she said.
“During the rainy season, maggots move everywhere and flies become part of food when in the kitchen. Adults and children get infected with diseases. We do not have peace.”
During the rainy season, maggots move everywhere and flies become part of food when in the kitchen. Adults and children get infected with diseases. We do not have peace
MEDICAL WASTE
Improper disposal of medical waste in Mombasa has not only become a disturbance to the residents but also a concern to county health officials.
In Mwakirunge, the situation is endangering the lives of residents, with children especially vulnerable.
Shivasti said they have seen vehicles bringing the medical waste directly from health facilities.
“On many occasions, you will find our children blowing used condoms, thinking they are balloons,” she said.
“They even eat the remains from hospitals. It is a sad situation because these are innocent children, who do not understand if those are used syringes or cotton with blood. All they do is play with them. It is only God who protects their health.”
She said in October last year, there was an outbreak of scabies diseases in both children and adults.
“We suspect the disease was caused by the poor environment because this is the only region in Mombasa that was affected. We have children who still suffer from the disease, which keeps recurring,” Shivasti said.
Scientists say environmental hazards in Mwakirunge are affecting the community because they do not know which type of chemicals are in the syringes, whether they are flammable, toxic or not.
The risks are high. They might not be seen now but will emerge in future.
Mombasa-based environmentalist Edwin Chokwe said according to the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council, every hospital must have a disposal system for its waste.
The waste should be separated and then incinerated, and every hospital should have burners that can burn the waste at high temperatures.
“Currently most hospitals do open dumping, which is very dangerous and can cause infectious diseases. People can get infections such as bacterial virus,” he said.
“The medical waste should be incinerated and in case if a facility does not have the incinerator, the management should liaise with hospitals that have for help.”
He said there is an increase of medical waste disposal in Mwakirunge dumpsite but no follow-up has been done by the public health officials.
The environmentalist said the waste is burnt, thus producing toxic gases which interfere with the health of the community and also affect the environment directly.
“The soil absorbs the chemicals which turn to be poisonous in water, causing infections to the users,” Chokwe said.
He said the dumpsite should be fenced and restricted, and disposal done by scientific and trained people. He appealed to the National Assembly Environmental Committee to deal with environment issues on the ground.
“The county government has been involved but the uptake is poor, yet they are the ones who are supposed to ensure there is proper disposal of both domestic and medical waste,” he said.
UNLICENSED LAND
A copy of the Mombasa County Annual Development Plan 2020-21 called for the control of waste dumping and burning.
Some Sh100 million was set aside, according to the document, and an extra Sh200 million allocated for sanitary maintenance at the site.
Ragen Ainea, a private investigator who has been following up the matter, said nothing can be done in the area because the land is not approved by the National Environment Management Authority.
“When the land was proposed by the county government for the waste dumpsite, different entities were against the proposal because that is the same area where there is a path for airlines,” he said.
He said companies like the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) and the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA), together with Nema, did not approve of the existence of that dumpsite in Mwakirunge.
Ainea said the matter will proceed to court once all the required documents are ready for clarification on why the dumpsite exists despite being rejected by different entities.
“We must be an institution that is governed by law, which should not be violated. We will stand with the rule of law and ensure that the county government finds an alternative way of disposing of the waste,” he said.
Nema communication officer Evans Nyabuto confirmed that the land was not approved.
“We involved stakeholders who are the KAA who said no to the proposal because of the safety of Aviation. The area is so close to the path of flights, we have crows flying all over the place which is not safe for flights,” he said.
He said that the county government was given time to look for an alternative place but they are still using the place as the dumping site and now they might be forced to look for a proper way of solving the problem which might include proceeding to court.
“Fencing of the place cannot happen because the land is not licensed and the dumpsite is not supposed to be where it is. The crisis coming from medical centers is on high alert because the transition was not supposed to be done in the first place,” he said.
However, county department of trade and environment chief officer Abas Ilhan said that the area became an official dumpsite through public participation.
“Putting up the fence at the place has not been done because of the resource envelope. As a department we are advocating and sensitizing the community about segregation of the waste,” she said.
She said that the people who are collecting the waste are not licensed to do the work and they are the ones throwing medical and domestic waste anyhow.
“We are working with the public health act and taking action on the same. The disposal is supposed to be conducted in an appropriate manner, the situation in Mwakirunge is not only infectious to the children but also to the environment and action will be taken to any person who will be found going against the law,” she said.
WAY FORWARD
Residents are urging the government to take action and remove the dumpsite.
Shivatsi said the only solution is either to bring proper management by putting up the perimeter wall for the safety of their children and make the place clean, or remove the dumpsite and take it to another place.
“The waste has now blocked the road because it is huge,” she said.
“When it rains, our children always step in a muddy and stinking area while going to school because they do not have an alternative route.”
The dumpsite has been blamed for poverty because stray dogs around it eat domestic animals.
“We have tried to do a follow-up with the government on why they have denied us our rights to a clean environment and why the place is not fenced but get not answers,” she said.
Fellow resident Chale Kuza said they are heading to court to seek answers on where the Nema licence is and how the budget allocated to the area was used.
“We want the dumpsite to be removed because we do not want our children in future to blame us. By then, the diseases will be chronic,” he said.
Najib Shamsan, an environmentalist, said the user and the person disposing of the waste and the community have not been given proper education on how to do it.
“If you go to other countries like Rwanda, there are disposal mechanisms, right from the kitchen. People know where to dispose of plastic and recycled materials, something we have failed as a country,” he said.
He said the menace of garbage disposal and collection is fully at the county level.
“When you apply for a business licence, there is a fee you are charged for garbage collection,” Shamsan said.
“Every commercial person pays for that fee. But few have disposal containers in front of their shops, and none of the inspectorate departments or garbage collectors collects the garbage.”
Andrew Mativo, a human rights activist, said the increase of improper medical waste shows there is no mechanism being used to dispose of them properly as it needs special handling techniques and disposal mechanisms.
“As a county, we do not have the framework to deal with the waste and if it is there, it is not working because there is an increase in population, meaning there will be an increase in health services. The increase of small clinics is high but the question is where they dispose of their waste,” he said.
He said people who carry waste from health facilities are garbage collectors who are not empowered on how to handle the waste. They believe all waste is the same, hence, dispose of them anywhere, something which is dangerous to human life.
“The situation is becoming worse each day. We should take precautions to avoid untreatable injuries and diseases. The environment will also lose its worth. It is a sensitive issue which has not been given first priority is solving it,” Mativo said.
“We should be in a position to ensure we can reuse the waste we generate. If you cannot reuse it, recycle it, and if this cannot work, then minimise its production to avoid careless disposal.
“People should not produce what they cannot handle. We have waste that can make cups, manure, but the technology has not been embraced.”
