80 Officers build capacity to tackle waste management

Eighty health and environmental officers in the Greater-Accra Region have undergone training to equip them to efficiently tackle the growing challenges of waste management, methane emissions, and deteriorating air quality. 

The event, which was held at the Miklin Hotel in Accra, brought together officers from various municipal assemblies in the region to enhance their technical expertise and practical knowledge of sound waste management and air quality improvement strategies.

Organised by a youth-led environment and climate change advocacy group, the Green Africa Youth Organisation (GAYO), the workshops also provided comprehensive training on waste segregation, recycling and composting techniques; the benefits of composting for soil health and waste reduction.

Participants were taken through sources and impacts of methane gas emissions; mitigation strategies and technologies to reduce methane emissions. It covered advocacy for clean air and anti-incineration practices.

Also, participants were trained on modern waste segregation techniques, recycling processes, and the implementation of zero-waste strategies.

Addressing the participants, the Greater-Accra Regional Zero Waste Cities Manager of GAYO, Mabel Naa Amorkor Laryee, emphasised the critical role Environmental Health Officers played in fostering a cleaner and healthier environment.

“This workshop aligns with our mission to address climate change and environmental degradation through innovative and sustainable solutions. Equipping officers with the right tools and knowledge ensures that we can collectively make a difference in managing waste, reducing emissions and improving air quality,” she said.

Ms Laryee indicated that most people knew about carbon dioxide, but had little or no idea about methane gas, which is about 80 times more dangerous, among others.

Ms Laryee added that concern about quality air was on the rise but had been overlooked by others who saw it as normal in a time where “air quality or methane gas is actually killing us”.

She stated that the training was critical as it offered a better appreciation of the environmental challenges and risks the region faced and the best way to mitigate them to solve the issue of methane emissions from landfill sites and improve air quality. 

Threat

The Facility Manager at Afri-Set and Senior Lecturer at the Physics Department at the University of Ghana, Dr Allison F. Hughes, said “Air quality in Accra is a big issue because of the different type of sources that we have in Accra.”

He explained that in Accra, pollution from traffic, open burning of waste and unpaved roads, among others, had made air quality a great source of worry that must be addressed or the country risked respiratory diseases in the next few years.

Dr Hughes said recycling must be pursued by the government; with enforcements very strict on open burning and constructing good roads to address the dust issues, which also contributed to air pollution.

He called for more advocacy to help educate people about sound waste management and prevention of methane emission to help improve air quality in the Greater-Accra Region.

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An Environmental Health Officer from the Ayawaso East Municipal Assembly, Ibrahim Abass, described the training as “an eye-opener”.

“The knowledge I have gained will help me implement better waste management systems in my community, especially strategies to tackle methane emissions from our local landfill,” he said.

“People need to understand their role in waste segregation and recycling. This training has given me the tools to engage and educate the public effectively,” he said.