Government plans new landfills in Greater Accra and Eastern regions as Kpone site fills up

Pinned summary · as of 04:22

Ghana intends to open new rubbish dumps in Eastern Region and around Greater Accra, because the waste being produced is outgrowing current facilities. Mahama Ayariga, the Local Government, Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs Minister, gave the details in an interview on Eyewitness News on Monday, 29 September.

What we know

• Mr Ayariga said government wants to develop more landfills in Eastern Region and the Greater Accra area to absorb the rubbish now being produced.
• The minister described the Kpone landfill as full and said it is being lined up for decommissioning, with YEN.com.gh adding that it will be shut formally once the required planning steps are done.
• He linked the shortage of properly engineered landfills in some places to the earlier move of waste away from Agbogbloshie to other disposal sites.
• Mr Ayariga said ministers are studying alternatives to burying rubbish, among them incineration and systems that turn waste into energy.
• According to the minister, talks on bringing such technology into the national waste plan have already begun, and he had sat in one such meeting on the morning of the interview.
• He said the wider aim is to get some use out of waste instead of simply disposing of it in landfills.

Why it matters for Ghana

Households and businesses in Accra and its surroundings depend on refuse being collected and taken somewhere safe. If the Kpone site is closed before replacements are ready, collection firms and assemblies in Greater Accra and the Eastern Region will have fewer places to dump. The minister's remarks give residents a first sign of where new sites and possible energy-from-waste projects may be considered, though no locations, costs or dates were given.