The Rivers State Waste Management Agency, RIWAMA, is to shutdown its dumpsite along the dual carriageway named after Professor Tam David-‎West which takes traffic to and from the Port Harcourt International Airport.

The decision to relocate the dump site is coming in the wake of an order issued by  Governor Siminalayi Fubara.

The Governor who unveiled the new plan to relocate the existing dumpsite said government intends to acquire a permanent site in the Ikwerre Local Government Area near Bamboo Estate, off Eneka Road.

Speaking while inspecting a replacement site, Fubara described the location of the dumpsite along the Airport–Obiri Ikwerre Road, as a public health threat.

He also said that in terms of aesthetics the existing dumpsite along a major gateway into Port Harcourt city creates a sour impression about the state and its people, viewed from the perspective of first time visitors who arrive the State capital via that route.

“The kind of environmental hazards that we are facing there along the Airport–Obiri- Ikwerre Road; the smell on that road being the entrance into the State, we felt it’s not proper,” the Governor noted

He said. “we are making alternative arrangements so we can have a permanent refuse dumpsite that meets acceptable standards.”

He added that the government would act swiftly to formalise ownership of the land and complete construction work on the access road to make the new  site functional.

“We have not concluded the issue of the burrow pit, but the access road, I think the government is doing something about it. So, I will make sure that everything that needs to be done to ensure government owns this burrow pit is done,” he stated.

He expressed concern about the environmental and health challenges posed by the existing site, which sits along a major entry point into the State.

Governor Fubara commended the Rivers State Waste Management Agency (RIWAMA) for what he described as a more assertive and improved approach to managing refuse across the State.