Stop sweeping waste into manholes, AEPB warns
NAN-H-10
Manhole
By Vivian Emoni
Abuja, Feb. 7, 2018 (NAN) The Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) has warned street sweepers to desist from sweeping waste into manholes, to avoid blocking drainage in the FCT.
Mr Ibrahim Muktar, the Head, Public Relations and Outreach Unit of the board, gave the warning in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja.
Muktar said that the board had noticed that some of the street sweepers had formed the habit of sweeping waste into manholes, instead of arranging the waste in a proper manner.
According to him, the waste put into manholes can block the drainage, which can increase flooding in an environment and lead to loss of lives and property.
“The habit of throwing waste into manholes can also lead to land pollution which could cause health diseases.
“The board is warning sweepers who engage themselves in such attitude to desist, because we have instructed them of how to handle waste, and it is very wrong sweeping dirt into manholes.
“The board employed the cleaning contractors; they are supposed to come around to evacuate the waste on a daily basis with their trucks. This is to ensure effective service delivery.
“The intervention of cleaning contractors is to improve the sanitary conditions of the environment.
“AEPB also set up machinery to reduce manual method of sweeping in the Federal Capital Territory.
“We have those contractors who clear the grasses and sweep the highways with machines while the women sweep manually on daily basis within the city,’’ he said.
Muktar said that the board would continue to monitor contactors to find out the particular company which was engaged in such habit.
He advised FCT residents to also desist from throwing garbage into manholes, roads, empty places or illegal dump sites.
Muktar said the board was putting measures in place to ensure proper management of all the dump sites in the FCT. (NAN)
VOE/GOM/SOA
Edited by Gregory Mmaduakolam/Oluwole Sogunle
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