Lagos fails to relocate dumpsite despite complaints

Residents of Oko Filling, Igando, in the Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State have again lamented the stench from the heap of waste and trucks stationed in the area.

The community fears that the continuous dumping of refuse and the refusal of the government to clear the site could lead to outbreak of disease.

In 2022, Saturday PUNCH reported mounting complaints from the residents about the foul odours emanating from the Igando dumpsite, situated near active trading areas.

The PUNCH also reported in 2023 that the Igando community continued to grapple with noxious smells and contaminated water linked to the nearby dumpsite.

The Lagos State Government had proposed the closing of the Igando dumpsite in 2017 due to constant complaints by residents.

In a report on its website, the Lagos State Government had also on December 31, 2019, said it “has concluded arrangements to decommission the landfills and refuse dumpsites located along LASU-Isheri Road, Igando, as part of efforts targeted at preventing potential exposure to an epidemic among residents of the area.”

The state’s Commissioners for Health and Environment, and Water Resources were quoted as saying the dumpsite was causing environmental hazards and traffic congestion to residents of the area, and that a lasting solution was to decommission the site and restore serenity in the environment.

In the reports, medical experts raised the alarm that exposure to waste could cause respiratory tract and lung infections with effects ranging from eye, nose, throat and lung irritation, to coughing, sneezing, runny nose and shortness of breath.

Our correspondent, who visited the area on Wednesday, observed how the odour oozed, forcing commuters to cover their nostrils as they passed.

A resident of the area, Wahab Taiwo, said the community might have given up as the government refused to attend to their complaints on the dumpsite.

“So many people have moved away from this area. A cinema also shut down as a result of this issue,” he added.

Reacting, the General Manager of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, Babatunde Ajayi, said the dumpsite was being managed by the Lagos Waste Management Authority.

“I’m aware that the Ministry of Environment and LAWMA will be decommissioning the dumpsite in a couple of months. Decommissioning of a dumpsite is not an overnight thing, it takes a while. There’ll be a lot of evacuations, recycling and some activities,” he said.

Ajayi stressed that agency would highlight the concerns of the residents and partner with LAWMA.