Himalayan News Service

Kathmandu, January 28

A team of consultants from Japan has arrived in Kathmandu to study the overall situation of solid waste management in the five municipalities of Kathmandu Valley. The team will examine the final disposal plan of the Valley among others.

The study, to be conducted by the Japanese team and other voluntary researchers, is scheduled to end in June 2005.

The study will be carried out in the Kathmandu Metropolitan City, Lalitpur Sub-Metropolitan City and municipalities of Bhaktapur, Madhyapur and Kirtipur.

The mayors of all five municipalities and representatives from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) were present during a meeting held today at the Ministry of Local Development.

In the KMC, the team will focus on evaluation of the feasibility of waste transportation to Okharpauwa area, and the upgradation of the collection and transportation vehicles, if the area is suitable. The improvement of the existing dumping site along the Bagmati river and the involvement of private sectors will also be considered in the process.

In Lalitpur, the condition of the existing equipment will be the focus of the study. The team will also examine a possible site for future final waste disposal in Taikabu of Tathali VDC.

Examination of possible future final waste disposal sites in Chobhar and other areas will be studied in Kirtipur, while community-based solid waste management will de considered in Madhyapur.

For the execution of the study, a steering committee was formed under the joint secretary of MLD, Som Lal Subedi.

The members of this committee are representatives from MLD, Solid Waste Management and Resource Mobilisation Centre, Ministry of Population and Environment, Minister of Physical Planning and Works and five municipalities.

Due to the Nepali side facing difficulty in appointing full-time personnel for the study it was agreed that the Nepali side would assign at least two persons in each city for the study based on the working schedule that would be prepared by the study team.