Editorial»
What a waste
APR 14 -
The collection and disposal of solid waste emanating from Kathmandu Valley has been a perennial pain in the neck for the government. When it’s not the locals living near the dumping sites disrupting the movement of vehicles ferrying waste products from the Valley, it’s staff at Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) halting the process. Last week, the locals of Chhatredeurali of Dhading district halted garbage disposal in the Valley for the 59th time in the last four years. As the government has been unable to carry out waste management services effectively, by and large on its own, the voice for greater involvement of the private sector has been gaining strength in recent times. In response, five months ago the government set up a high-level committee tasked with handing over the Valley’s waste management to private players, but, for some reason, the committee’s tenure was allowed to lapse without it having completed the selection process.
But there would have been no point in extending the committee’s tenure if it was to continue in its tardy pace: the committee’s tenure had already been extended to mid-April after it failed to finalise the private companies during its first term. The committee received letters of intention from 18 companies; of which 11 were short-listed. The final selection was to be made on the basis of the firms’ experience, resources and technical expertise. According to the plan, the chosen company (or set of companies) would not only collect and dispose of part of the solid waste, but also work to develop energy production, fertilisers, and other reusable products from the waste material.
But the plan has already met with many hurdles, most notably the high-level committee’s dissolution. It is now unclear when and how winners will be selected from the 11 short-listed firms. But even if the private players take up complete management of Valley’s waste — which is unlikely — they are likely to face some of the same problems government waste managers now come across. How will they manage the steady stream of demands, some very legitimate, of those living by landfill sites? Then there are those who question the efficiency of the private sector — which now looks after collection of solid waste in certain areas of Kathmandu Valley, and not always satisfactorily.
One of the major challenges for any body taking on waste management responsibilities in the Valley would be to implement past agreements the government entered into with various local bodies and residents living nearby the landfill sites. Without honouring those agreements, smooth management of around 500 tonnes of solid waste produced in the capital city on a daily basis will be a difficult task. For starters, the government could start the ball rolling by reviving and extending the high-level committee’s tenure. Which parts of waste management are to be handed over to private players and which to be kept under government control — now that would be an agonising decision in the advanced stages of negotiations.
Posted on: 2010-04-15 07:01
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