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Walter Nyamukondiwa Chinhoyi Bureau
Kadoma City has entered a partnership with two organisations that will see separation of household waste at source and collection of refuse three days in a week. Each day will be for specific waste items that include biodegradable food leftovers and plastics, among others. As part of the deal, six more refuse collection trucks will be purchased to complement the three currently in service. In an interview, Kadoma director of health and environmental services Mr Daniel Chirundu said the project would include vermiculture to manage organic waste.

“We are going to have a separate collection system where waste is separated at source so that people do not have to do it at the landfill site. Coupled with that, we have another partner that is going to work with our communities to produce organic fertiliser through use of worms,” he said.

This means that each household will have three bins and that will translate to waste being collected three times a day. Zim Worms will train at least 20 people in each ward to make the compost for organic fertiliser, while R12 will work with the city to procure coloured bins and they will provide an additional six refuse compactors. This comes as Kadoma has become one of two local authorities, including Norton in Mashonaland West Province, to construct a landfill site in line with modern trends of managing solid waste.

Landfill sites circumvent attendant challenges of waste scavenging, fires which have an impact on the environment and waste being blown away by the wind, leading to further pollution. After each day, waste is spread at the landfill site and covered with sand, while the risk of contaminating underground water has been eliminated by a clay and leachate lining. A borehole has been sunk to monitor underground water against contamination. A survey in Kadoma has shown that 60 percent of all waste is organic, which means there will be enough stock for the composts.