LAWMA Gives Fresh Update on Lagos Waste Crisis

(LAWMA. Photo by Vanguard News)

Residents were reassured yesterday by the Lagos State rubbish Management Authority, or LAWMA, that the state’s rubbish backlog would soon be eliminated.

This was said by Dr. Muyiwa Gbadegesin, Managing Director of LAWMA, at the commissioning of the newly built disposal platforms and the renovated Road E at the Olusosun Disposal Facility in the Ojota region of the state.

Speaking to reporters during the event, Gbadegesin characterized the project as a strategic intervention intended to improve access to the disposal plant, remove operational bottlenecks, and boost the effectiveness of trash evacuation operations around Lagos.

He said the agency had earlier announced plans to wind down activities at the site within a stipulated timeframe, recalling that an 18-month deadline had been set from the time construction began on the transfer loading station.

According to him, what has now been achieved is the reclamation of a portion of the site to serve as a disposal point as operations there are phased out.

A development he said would help clear the backlog of waste currently littering the roads, noting that this was not something the agency wanted to see persist.

He explained that opening up the site had created additional disposal space, and expressed confidence that within a few days, refuse would no longer be seen littering the roads.

He stressed, however, that ridding Lagos of dirt ultimately depends on the willingness of residents to embrace collective responsibility, noting that if everyone in the state resolved to stop dumping waste indiscriminately, the problem would be solved.

He lamented that some residents still dump refuse on roads and medians instead of handing it over to their designated PSP operators or waiting for scheduled collection.

He added that residents experiencing delays in waste collection should reach out to LAWMA directly.

Reaffirming LAWMA’s commitment to continually improving its waste management services, Gbadegesin urged Lagosians to support government efforts by patronising their assigned PSP operators, paying promptly for collection services, and desisting from indiscriminate refuse dumping.