Sustainable Development Goal 11 is ‘Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable”. Chapter 7 of Agenda 21 calls for, among others, improving human settlements management; promoting sustainable land-use planning and management and promoting the integrated provision of environmental infrastructure: water, sanitation, drainage and solid waste management. Among the Goal 11 targets is 11.6: By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management.
A small but important development in Kisumu City in Kenya exemplifies how cities can work to achieve specific targets under this goal. The restoration of open space at the Kachok dumpsite in Kisumu City, and upgrade to a botanical garden is one example of the power within us to make our cities more livable. At the height of its ignominy, the dumpsite was the main waste disposal site for the city. It was an eyesore and public health hazard that started off as a borrow pit before being turned into a dumpsite. What’s more, it stood next to the city’s sports stadium and a large shopping mall and at one time caused the stadium to be closed due to its stench. All kinds of waste ended up in the dumpsite, the most hazardous being medical waste and heavy metals.
Scavenging the Kachok dumpsite (2013)
At one point, a private developer reclaimed part of the dumpsite and built a warehouse while the owner of a high-end hotel had constructed a shallow well in the reclaimed land and was using the water for cleaning purposes, oblivious of the inherent danger. Water tests showed water in a storm drain passing by the dumpsite was the worst affected, with all determinands including NO3, BOD, COD, TDS, Total Coliforms, E. Coli and some heavy metals registered in excessive amounts. The well described above had nitrate pollution. Things have now changed, but the situation narrated here underscores the need to make our cities more livable.
Medical waste disposed of at the dumpsite (2013)
As the hydrogeologist in the team tasked with auditing the status and drawing up a close-down plan for the dumpsite some time in 2013, I had the opportunity recently to visit the now established public park. The transformation from then to now is amazing – the soils are free of contaminants such as heavy metals following tests. A small part is still used as a makeshift transfer station, but plans to reclaim the whole space are well underway. The transformation of the dumpsite is captured in the photos below.
Same location in 2013 (above) and the reclaimed open dumpsite (bottom).