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Dandora Dumpsite |
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HISTORY OF DANDORA DUMPSITE Dandora, is located in Nairobi, Kenya in the Embakasi Division. It's a place for the less fortunate and has high levels of poverty within it. It was first established in 1977 by the World Bank and Nairobi city council to cater and provide an area for the less fortunate and rapid growing population to stay in and it continued to grow and expand into a slum. After a short period of time, it became dumpsite as Nairobi?s industrial and domestic waste. Dandora is one of Africa?s well know slum recognized for its filth, poverty, illiteracy, pollution, rape, death, hunger and most importantly its health issues caused by the dumping of toxic waste. It is surrounded by many other slums like Mailisaba, Korogocho, Nguomongo just to name a few. Dandora is a disgrace and a black spot in Nairobi because every single day more than 2,000 metric tons of waste in dumped. SCENARIO The scenario in the Dandora slums, the level of poverty it very high. The inhabitants have very low income or no income at all and most of the time have a big family consisting of five six children to support. Since the family has very little money, as little as twenty shillings, they cannot afford to send the children to school and therefore there is high level of illiteracy. There isn?t enough money to even feed the family so the children everyday scavenge the dumpsite in search for food and other valuables as a source of income and in that dumpsite there is a lot of chemical toxins dumped by factories and industries which the people and children of Dandora touch in search of food and when they find the food, it is unhygienic and dangerous to eat which causes illness, poisoning and sicknesses and once again the families cannot afford to pay these bills and there is high level of death. Many inhabitants cannot go to work or find jobs because they are very illiterate and cannot support themselves. Many children go with only one meal for three days and with the amount of hunger they go through the can eat anything even if it?s something harmful, just as long as their stomachs are filled. Solid waste is carelessly dumped environmental problems have taken a rise. All kinds of filthy untreated waste is found there ranging from sanitary pads to syringes, plastics, rubber, lead based paints, slippers and many other toxic chemicals. Due to the overload of the rubbish a lot of it is deposited and ends up in the Nairobi River which passes through Dandora. This pollutes the water and makes it poisonous. Children, men and women bathe and drink this water contaminated with germs, dirt and bacteria and that is very poisonous for their health and wellbeing. Since Dandora had no adequate sewage system, a lot of the sewage consisting of faeces and urine end up in the river creating health and environmental risks. When this water is used for irrigation by other people down the river, the urine seeps into the soil and kills the plants because of their uric acid. Some places the river water is blocked and it provides a ground to breed mosquitos leading to malaria. The plastic bags and cans, trigger algae growth which is quite hazardous as it contaminates the water. The garbage is a mountainous heap and is constantly burnt. The acidic fumes of sulphur, lead and other heavy metals not only cause serious air pollution and acid rain but the noxious fumes also affects the respiratory system of the inhabitants. The children are more vulnerable to the air pollution because of their weak lungs and tender body structure. The air pollution from burning garbage can nutrient balance in water bodies can make them more acidic thus killing marine life as the wind can carry the smoke particles over long distances. ?As a result of all this pollution, children suffer from skin diseases, abdominal pains and eye infections and dental problems.? WHAT DO THE INHABITANTS DO TO CONSERVE THE DUMPSITE? There are a few inhabitants who try and conserve it. Some try and collect materials that can be recycled from the dumpsite such as glass, rubber, plastic, aluminum and they separate them and they earn an income through this. WHAT ACTIONS HAVE ALREADY BEEN TAKEN? The locals have not really done so much to help the dumpsite except recycling for an income. The few actions that have taken place are that few recycling plants have been set up and the city by laws is trying to ensure proper waste disposal. WHAT GENERAL LAWS EXIST IN KENYA TO PREVENT BIODIVERSITY AND ECO SYSTEM LOSS? a) ?No person shall operate a wastes disposal site or plant without a licence issued by the Authority. b) Every person whose activities generate wastes shall employ measures essential to minimize wastes through treatment, reclamation and recycling? WHAT GLOBAL LAWS ARE THERE ALREADY TO AID BIODIVERSITY AND SAVING THE PLANET? UK ?The waste may only be taken to a facility that has an environmental permit allowing it to manage hazardous waste of that particular type. Permits are issued by the Environment Agency who set conditions for: the operation of the facility, such as the types and volumes of waste that may be accepted how the waste is to be treated how it is to be stored and the specific emission limits and conditions relating to any need to keep activities away from sensitive? receptors. New Zealand ?Puts a levy on all waste disposed of in landfills to generate funding to help local government, communities and businesses reduce the amount of waste.? WHAT CAN THE LOCALS DO TO THEIR ENVIRONMENT WITHOUT FURTHER HARMING IT? Once the Dandora dumpsite if full, the inhabitants of Dandora will need to decide and find a new dumpsite. Before the garbage is dumped in the dumpsite, they should separate the garbage into recyclable products, biodegradable products and non-biodegradable products. The recyclable products should be separated and be taken to recycling plants, the biodegradable should be kept together to form a massive compost heap and the non-recyclable or biodegradable products should be burnt in an incinerator and this way the dumpsite will be cleared and the amount of air pollution will be much more less. The government should also be able to provide workshops for the illiterate and teach them how to look after the environment and their own personal health. The government should also sensitize the inhabitants about the mental, physical, and health effects of the dumpsite. By doing this more jobs will be provided which leads to an economic growth. References 1) http://kenvironews.wordpress.com/2008/11/12/dandora-dumpsite-poses-serious-threat-to-public-health-and-environment/ 2) http://www.nema.go.ke/images/stories/pdf/EMCA.pdf section VII number 87 3) http://www.defra.gov.uk/consult/files/annex1.pdf Page 8 section 2.3.1 4) Mr John ochomwi for geneal information of Dandora and for illustrating the situation in Dandora. 5) Mrs Betty Kariuki , Former Dandora Slum dweller |
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13 Comments
Thank you for sharing.
Posted 29-08-2013 15:59
nice report
Posted 26-02-2013 00:13
Yes, especially developing countries. We need stronger laws to eradicate this problem once and for all.
Posted 21-02-2013 21:36
Good article! It's great how you described various ways to solve the problem. It's surprising how so many communities aroud the world are struggling with the same problem. Thanks for sharing ^^
Posted 21-02-2013 19:41
Thanks! This is quite a big issue in Kenya and something needs to be done!
Posted 21-02-2013 14:31
Good report
Posted 18-02-2013 20:38
Yes this is really informative! I would love to share this article on many other boards too. :)
Posted 18-02-2013 10:43
Thanks for sharing such information.
Posted 13-02-2013 17:34
Thx for the detailed and informative article...Generation of waste and it's handling pose the threat alongwith lack of knowledge and awareness
Posted 12-02-2013 21:13
This is one of the side effects of urbanisation == lot of big metros have such waste dumps . I saw one at Rio , at that point this dump was one of the world's biggest. Thankfully it was closed just before the Earth Summit.
Posted 12-02-2013 02:43
Thanks for the article. It is interesting to know, though time frame is different, that every nation shares the similar concerns somehow...
Posted 11-02-2013 21:11
Well shared
Posted 11-02-2013 20:19
Informative! thanks for Sharing
Posted 11-02-2013 14:34