Keep waste business private

 The Nairobi County governor has announced plans to form an authority that will manage garbage collection in the capital. He said the authority will help to do away with private garbage collectors and waste cartels. This means the county will go back to collecting waste.

As cities across the world move away from direct management of garbage collection to total privatisation mostly through franchise, our counties still dream of running the sector even though they have been unable to properly manage it.

Private garbage collectors especially in Nairobi came into being when the then Nairobi City Council failed to adequately provide the service. The governor has a point when he says private garbage collection has almost become a cartel business, but what the county should do is go back to the drawing board and address the whole waste chain.

Modern and good waste managers should always address waste management through segregation at source—homes, markets and industries. Encouraging recycling will minimise waste at source, thus reducing what goes to the dumping site. The private waste collectors licensed or contracted by counties should be encouraged to push for separation at source before collection.

Market waste has been a big nuisance in almost all counties. The devolved units should see the potential in market waste and embrace compositing. An analysis of waste in most counties has shown that the organics are almost 60 per cent of the total waste, with most of it coming from markets.

Counties should strictly stick to enforcement and compliance. Good waste managers should move from the old methods of collection, transportation and disposal and make a paradigm shift to modern practices.

Solid waste management is an expensive venture. Privatisation, when approached properly, is still the way to go. Waste is money and the counties should smell the coffee.

Mr Kigo is an environmentalist. [email protected]