| dc.description.abstract | Plastic waste issues have attracted widespread concern and attention III Kenya,
particularly in the last five years, due to the widespread littering throughout the country.
The rapid rate of urbanization throughout the world has led to the generation of
increasing amounts of waste, including plastic waste and this in turn poses difficulties for
disposal. The problem is more acute in developing countries such as Kenya. At present
there is a large amount of plastic waste, particularly plastic bags and plastic bottles,
which are seen littered all over in' Kenya. This has led to environmental degradation,
especially in major cities and towns in the country.
In this regard, a research study was carried out with particular reference to Nairobi as a
case study and recommendations have been made that could contribute to the
development of efficient policy approaches on plastic waste management and in
particular as it regards the management of plastic bags and plastic bottles in Kenya. The
study was limited to plastic waste management, with special emphasis on plastic bags and
plastic bottles. Plastic bags and plastic bottles were chosen because they contribute
extensively to littering, and pose a serious problem of disposal, especially in urban areas
in Kenya.
During the study it was discovered that few policies exist to address the acute problem of
waste management, leave alone plastic waste, in the country. The strengths, weakness
and missing links of the existing policies were discussed with various stakeholders and
recommendations made.
During the study, it became evident that waste management policies in Kenya have for a
long time been unclear. This has been more so because of lack of clear guidelines on
what constitutes waste and methodologies of collection, treatment and disposal of wastes.
In the past, the Public Health Act and the Local Authorities by-laws have been used for
addressing solid waste issues. The Public Health Act places a duty on all local authorities
to provide solid waste management services. The Local Government Act gives power to
local authorities to establish and maintain solid waste management services. The local
authorities such as the Nairobi City Council (NCC) have enacted several by-laws through
which they attempt to regulate the solid waste management activities.
The only comprehensive legal and institutional framework for the management of the
environment in Kenya is the Environmental Management and Coordination Act (EMCA)
of 1999. The legislation was formulated to help in managing the environment including
addressing associated issues such as waste management. The Act states "no person shall
discharge or dispose of any wastes, whether generated within or outside Kenya, in such a
manner as to cause pollution to the environment or ill health to any person". However,
detailed analysis of the Act has revealed that it has not been effective in dealing with the
issues of plastic waste and its associated problems. The Act does not specifically address
the issue related to plastic waste management. So the failure to incorporate a long-term
solution to address the problem of plastic waste has been the key limitation of existing
policies. As a result it has not been possible to address the issue of the littering of plastic
bags and plastic bottles and as such there is no long-term solution to the problem.
Based on the study, a number of policy recommendations have been made that could
assist decision-makers in their efforts to develop a comprehensive plan of action for
plastic waste management in Kenya. | en |
