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Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has declared what he described as a state of emergency on waste management in the state, announcing a multi-pronged intervention to address mounting refuse across the metropolis.
Sanwo-Olu, who spoke on Wednesday during an inspection of the Olusosun dumpsite, said the government had recognised the recent pressure on waste collection and the indiscriminate dumping of refuse across the city.
He said the government would immediately increase the capacity of Olusosun and other dumpsites to improve the turnaround time of waste trucks, while also deploying additional equipment and opening more waste-receiving locations.
According to him, Olusosun currently receives between 220 and 250 trucks daily, but the government plans to increase this to between 350 and 450 trucks by expanding the number of tipping points from two or three to four or five.
Sanwo-Olu said Solous 3 in Alimosho, Ewu Elepe in Ikorodu, Oke Osho in Epe and Erekiti in Badagry would also be activated or improved, with the aim of having multiple operational waste-receiving sites within the next 30 to 60 days.
He said the expansion would reduce the hours waste collection trucks spend waiting at dumpsites and improve collection efficiency across the state.
The governor also announced that the state had ordered 160 new compactor trucks, which he said would begin arriving soon to boost waste collection from homes and roads.
He disclosed that the government was also considering the procurement of landfill compactors, while waste collection operators were being encouraged to invest in additional equipment.
Beyond the immediate intervention, Sanwo-Olu announced plans for two 2,400-metric-tonne transfer loading stations at Olusosun and Solous 3, which will receive compacted waste for onward transportation to material recovery facilities.
He said material recovery sites were being developed in Epe and Erekiti in Badagry, where waste would be sorted and processed for other uses.
The projects, he said, represent tens of millions of dollars in investment and are expected to begin coming on stream between the first and third quarters of next year.
Sanwo-Olu also turned his attention to the operations of private sector participation (PSP) waste operators, saying the association had agreed to review its membership and remove operators who no longer have the capacity or willingness to provide effective services.
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He said the exercise would create room for new investors while ensuring that only capable operators remain in the system.
The governor also appealed to residents to pay for waste collection services, saying it was unfair for residents to demand services without paying operators who provide them.
At the same time, he warned residents against indiscriminate dumping, announcing tougher enforcement against offenders.
Sanwo-Olu said environmental officers would monitor both PSP operators and residents, adding that offenders could face prosecution in mobile and public courts.
He warned that residents could not justify dumping refuse on roads, highways and drainage channels simply because a PSP operator had failed to arrive at their homes within 24 hours.
The governor also announced an imminent restructuring of the Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), criticising what he described as an excessive concentration of senior officials in offices while operational personnel were needed on the streets and at dumpsites.
He said the entire organisational structure of LAWMA would be reviewed to put more personnel into field operations.
“Waste is outside on the street; it’s not in their offices,” Sanwo-Olu said, insisting that the agency must become more operationally responsive.
The governor acknowledged government’s responsibility for the current challenges but said the rapid growth of Lagos was also putting increasing pressure on existing infrastructure.
He said the state was generating more waste as its population continued to grow, stressing that government, residents and waste operators all had responsibilities in addressing the problem.
Sanwo-Olu assured Lagosians that the government would continue to monitor the situation and implement measures aimed at restoring a cleaner and more efficient waste management system across the state.
