•Residents of Lagos community cry out over groundwater contamination
By Tessy Igomu
The putrid stench that hangs thickly in the air is pungent and bitter. Yet, people go about their businesses, seemingly unbothered by the situation.
Those visiting the area for the first time cannot but cover their noses and hold their breath to save themselves from the terror of the stench. But the visitors would soon realise that the odour has become an integral part of life in the area, and the residents have conditioned their minds to live with it.
This is the situation on both sides of the LASU-Iba Road by Okofili Bus stop in Igando, Lagos. The sources of the noxious stench are two landfill sites, Solous Two and Solous Three, both dominating the area like two monstrous mountains. While Solus Three, also known as Okofili is located near the Igando General Hospital, Solous Two, also called Bola, is just by Lanre Bus stop.
Sitting on massive 7.8 and five hectares of land, the site which has been rated among the largest in Africa, receives an average of 2,250 tons of refuse daily.
For the residents, the two refuse dumps have caused them so much pain and anguish over the years.
Aside from having to cope with stench and toxic fumes that envelop the atmosphere from the landfill sites, invasion of the area by various houseflies, battling with chronic nausea, debilitating headaches and respiratory problems, residents lament that they now face the grave threat of groundwater contamination from the sites.
They are scared that there might be an outbreak of cholera or other debilitating illnesses if the two landfill sites are not relocated.
They have described the water from the area as unhealthy and not useful as it contained pollutants.
According to some landlords, the groundwater in the area have been contaminated by liquefied waste, thereby contaminating the water with hazardous pollutants like landfill gas and heavy metals, among other elements.
They informed that the only thing the water could be used for was to flush the lavatory, adding that despite that, it was still unsafe. Overtime, the water’s toxicity would destroy the colour and quality of the enamelware, they noted.
As the reporter was taken round the area, samples of water fetched to substantiate the contamination claim from boreholes and wells within the radius of the dumpsites showed signs of significant deterioration. The water not only smelled badly, it also had a toxic look.
Another noticeable feature in the area was the presence of abandoned water tanks with oily, rustic appearance, which seemed like signs of damage done by toxins from the landfill sites.
The Igando mini-waterworks, the reporter gathered, does not adequately cover the area due to its inability to produce at its installed capacity. The demand for water in the area also outweighs supply. As such, groundwater then becomes the main source of potable water supply. As it stands, residents are in limbo and are forced to go far in search of water. Otherwise, they are left with the choice of seeking the services of water tankers at exorbitant rates for survival.
Kunle Animashaun, who owns a filling station opposite one of the landfill sites, told the reporter he had been spending so much to buy water. He explained that all his underground pipes had rusted and were bringing out brownish water.
“Most houses have abandoned their water tanks for years. You can tell from the colours of the tanks that water from them cannot be consumed by humans. For years, we have decried the level of environmental degradation here. Our lives have been badly affected by the landfill sites. The place has negatively affected the health and quality of life of people here,” he said.
Another resident, Bimpe Afolabi, said access to good water had become a huge challenge due to heavy iron content, which makes the water smell awful.
According to her: “The colour is very terrible as well as the stench. Each time it rains here, the quality of water within this area deteriorates in quality and smell. We cannot use the water to cook, let alone drink. We cannot get good water no matter how deep we dig. The water here is highly contaminated. We are really facing a hard time here. It is really sad to realise that some people cannot afford to buy water and are left with the hard choice of drinking and cooking with this poison. Almost all the residents behind this Bola dumpsite have water problems because of this dumpsite.”
Describing the situation as death by instalments, she said living in the area had been like an endless nightmare.
“It is really a terrible situation and we are calling on the state governor to, as a matter of urgency, come to our rescue. We are dying slowly from exposure to toxins and other free radicals. So many people have fallen sick due to the polluted air and water. We just know some people are sick and they can’t seem to be diagnosed of any particular ailment. The state government should not wait until it degenerates into a full epidemic. For us, shutting the sites remains the only solution to this problem.”
A landlord, Kunle Shodipo, an octogenarian, said several attempts to have the issue addressed by the Lagos State government have been futile. He informed that despite writing series of letters through the state Ministry of the Environment, and with assurances that positive steps would be taken, nothing had happened. He described the situation as intolerable.
He said: “When it rains, it becomes worse because the refuse and contaminated water from the dumpsite would flow down, flood the entire road and make it impassable. At such time, no vehicle would be able to access the road and it becomes worse for pedestrians because the whole place would be covered by dark, dirty, stinking water. Wading through the water even exposes us to serious epidemic, so we are most time marooned in our homes.”
Speaking further, the octogenarian lamented that unavailability of water and the odour emanating from the dumpsites had caused most of the landlords irreparable loss, economically and health-wise.
He noted that the odour and the realization that there won’t be access to good water had been scaring potential tenants away. He also asserted that many tenants had left even as many were set to leave.
Reacting to the issue, Ola Folashade, General Manager, Material Recovery, West Africa Energy, a private firm managing the dumpsites, said the firm and its officials were not aware of the problem. He said the water used by staff and others within the dumpsites were not contaminated.
She, however, maintained that if at all there was any atom of contamination, it was self-inflicted. She said the residents had once taken some actions that might now be denying them access to quality water. She said those managing the landfill sites at the time had warned the residents that the action would be inimical to their wellbeing.
Folashade explained that in order to allow water to easily flow from the area into the landfill sites with ease, residents had cut through a point on the wall. She noted that after being saturated with water at a point, especially with the rains, there was a major flow back, which caused massive flooding.
“When my attention was called to it, I immediately stopped all operations on the sites and moved an excavator to a point on Solous Three, where a hole was discovered to have been carved out on the wall. The place was immediately blocked with concrete. Further investigation as to the origin of the outlet revealed that residents were actually warned against taking the step years back. I am actually surprised about the contamination because we have good water here.”
She, however, assured that the firm handling the sites were already planning to fumigate the area to ensure that the place was rid of rodents and mosquitoes.