The Communications Manager of Zoomlion Ghana Limited, Robert Coleman, has appealed to government to as a matter of urgency; ensure the payment of money owed the Accra Compost and Recycling Plant, to avoid any disaster that might occur.

“The current situation is such that the country is sitting on a time bomb and if the issue is not resolved, the city will be engulfed with filth and the health implications will be serious,” he said.

He noted that with the closure of the Accra Compost Plant, the only plant currently operating was the Kpone dump site and with the onset of the rains and the unavailability of a dump site in Accra; pressure would be mounted on the only dump site.

Explaining the huge tonnes of waste Accra generates, Mr Coleman stated that the Accra Compost Plant receives 70 trucks of refuse each day, giving the Compost Plant 600 tonnes of waste to process.

“Each truck collects 150 bins, representing 150 homes, and with the closure of the Compost site, one can imagine the waste that will be left in homes even for three days,” he added.

He said the closure will also put so much pressure on the Kpone dump site, with many trucks lined up waiting for their turn to off-load their trucks and “this also means that if a truck does eight trips in a day, with the current situation, each truck can only do at least one trip in a day.”

The Accra Compost and Recycling Plant was shut down on May 19, for the inability of government to pay the GHC 20 million as part of the contract signed between the two.

The Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development represented government in signing the contract

Government’s part of the contract was to bear the cost of tipping the waste that was received and processed at the plant.

The closure has resulted in heaps of refuse not being collected from homes and other collection sites, sending a health alert to citizens in the region.

Mr Coleman appealed to the Accra Metropolitan Assembly to ensure that it also fulfills its obligation of giving the waste management agencies the final refuse dumping sites as stipulated in the bye laws.

“If the Assembly is able to offer the final dumping sites, this problem will be resolved,” he added.

He also pleaded with the various households to bear with them as the closure has resulted in delay s in the collection of refuse.