29 May 2017

Chief public health officer at Kgalagadi District Council, Mr Patrick Keongadile says  sprawling industrialisation is one of the reasons behind the existence of complex waste issues that nations are currently attempting to address.

Speaking at a two-day Waste Management Pitso in Tsabong recently, Mr Keongadile said the complex waste brought by modernisation were hard to dispose of as they were nondegradable.

“A lot of people in Botswana own cars and they don’t know how to get rid of worn out tyres which are nondegradable. We are also living in the times where new flat television sets have replaced the old sets and disposing the old ones gives everyone a headache. Some of these people resort to throwing this waste everywhere, an action that poses danger to both animal and human life,” he said.

Mr Keongadile warned that nondegradable pollutants such as metals and synthetic plastics were deadly to the ecosystem, adding that they had a role to play in global warming and recent climatic change patterns.

The public health official, therefore, noted that the issue of intricate waste was a problem that needs concerted efforts from all stakeholders.

Furthermore, Mr Keongadile stated that Kgalagadi District was not performing well in the national clean up campaigns, adding that litter had made commercial areas and public spaces unattractive in most villages

Principal environmental health officer, Ms Dorcus Tsamai also concurred with co-worker Mr Keongadile that there was dire limitation of resources at Kgalagadi District Council.

“The waste management resources in our district are insufficient. Currently, we have two compactor trucks, two truck slides loaders, two clinical waste vehicles that service the entire district. Upon introspection, we decided it would be best to place focus on collection of domestic  waste rather than clinical waste.”

For her part, principal environmental health officer at Jwaneng Town Council, Ms Retty Koosimile informed the gathering that National Development Plan (NDP) 11 had not budgeted for the expansion of sanitary land fills and dumping sites.

She said the situation would put a strain on local authorities because most waste storage facilities had reached the end their life span.

To combat the situation, Ms Koosimile urged district and town councils to devise waste recycling plans and money generating schemes to support the lifespan of landfills and dumping sites.

In addition, Ms Koosimile further stated that government had taken the decision to engage business owners to collect their own waste.

Participants, who were mainly village development committee leadership from different villages across Kgalagadi District also raised a few challenges.

The problem that dominated the discussion was the poor maintenance and monitoring of dumping sites.

The other experience channelled was that resting places along the Trans-Kalahari Highway were polluted because travellers relieve themselves in such areas.

The Pitso that was held under the theme “Our Place, Our District, Our Responsibility” was organised by Kgalagadi District Council and was intended to share experiences and appreciate challenges on the area of waste management. ENDS