The Naboro Landfill has received 1,295,651 tonnes of waste since its inception in August 2005 to December last year, and the tonnage of waste landing has increased drastically over the years.
This was relayed to the Assistant Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, Sakiusa Tubuna, and the Permanent Secretary for Environment, Mere Lakeba, who were invited by the operators of the Naboro Landfill- HG Leach, for a brief tour and update of the operations of the landfill.
The CEO of HG Leach, Eric Souchon, invited Tubuna and Lakeba for a first-hand briefing following their respective appointments in December.
During the briefing, Tubuna reiterated the importance of waste management within communities and waste separation at source to reverse the load on landfill.
He says to deal with the overall issue of waste management there must be consistent efforts on awareness and a definitive change in waste disposal behaviour.
The Assistant Minister says we all should commit and work together to end the illegal and unethical disposal of litter, which we all face today.
Tubuna adds Town and City Councils should seek support from the Ministry in strategically assisting with ways and means of assisting them in managing litter/waste within their council boundaries.
He stressed that the Ministry of Environment has been carrying out public awareness and advocacy work through media and community outreach programs, conducting Litter Prevention Officers Training and supporting recycling and composting initiatives.
He says the Ministry in the coming days will continue to engage with all municipal councils to ensure that our environment is kept free of illegal dumping and littering.
The Permanent Secretary for Environment Mere Lakeba assured the executives of HG Leach that under her guidance, the Ministry of Environment will ensure that further construction of cells at the landfill will be properly planned and managed and that both parties collaborate and work towards what is best for Fiji and its people.
She says since 2015, the Government has allocated $1 million annually to subsidize the gate fees for municipal councils at the Naboro landfill.
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