Zimbabwe: EMA Gives Harare Council Ultimatum Over Uncollected Garbage

The Environmental Management Agency (EMA) has given City of Harare a 10-day ultimatum to clear garbage at various illegal dumpsites in Mbare’s residential and marketplaces or face sanctions.

EMA recently toured Mbare to assess the current environmental situation and discovered the crowded residential suburb had numerous illegal dump sites due to failure by the local authority to collect refuse.

Harare Metropolitan Province environmental education and publicity officer Batsirai Sibanda said EMA had served City of Harare with an environmental protection order compelling the local authority to remove garbage on the undesignated dumpsites in Mbare.

“The circumstance giving rise to serving of the order is of illegal dumps due to non-refuse collection in Mbare in areas that include Mbare Musika Terminus exit, farmers’ market, Matererini Flats transfer point, Mutare Rank, Remembrance House transfer point and at Corner Chigwida Street and Ardbennie Street,” Sibanda said in a statement.

He said EMA had provided the local authority with a tractor to collect waste which was dumped during storm drain clearing to promote proper waste management in the capital during the rainy season.

Last year, City of Harare signed a partnership deal with Clean City Africa, a subsidiary of Cassava Smartech, to improve service delivery on refuse collection and clear all the illegal dumpsites.

In her latest 2020 audit report on urban councils, auditor General Mildred Chiri said poor waste management by local authorities was posing serious health problems to residents.

Findings of the audit revealed that most urban local authorities were failing to adopt sustainable waste disposal systems.

She said the local authorities lacked adequate and modern equipment for efficient service provision on waste management.

EMA encouraged all local authorities to prioritise refuse collection and adopt sustainable waste management systems.

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