Plastic waste crisis sabotages environment and economic activities in Congo

Residents in eastern Congo are experiencing regular power cuts due to plastic wastes choking the Ruzizi hydroelectric dam.

The frequent power outage caused by plastic bottles, jerrycans and other plastic items blocking the dam have disrupted businesses, emphasizing the environmental and economic challenges in the region.

Situated in the southern end of Lake Kivu, the Ruzizi dam has become a collection point for thousands of pieces of plastic waste dumped into the lake, which stretches about 90 km along the border between Congo and Rwanda. This has impacted the dam's output.

"Here we have four machines, and together, these four machines produce a total of 29.8 megawatts. These waste materials affect all four machines at once," said Liévin Chizungu, head of production of Société Nationale d'Électricité (SNEL) in eastern DR Congo.

To prevent complete turbine blockage, divers have to remove plastic waste accumulating at a depth of 14 meters at the bottom of the river, in addition to daily surface-level cleaning.

Local officials are, however, looking to introduce a new waste management system to resolve this persistent plastic waste problem.

"Requiring each household in Bukavu to join a waste collection organization will ultimately allow us to assess to what extent, once each household collects its waste, these collection organizations can pick up the waste from households and transport it to disposal sites," Didier Kabi, the provincial minister of environment and green economy, said

The ongoing waste management issue highlights the need for sustainable solutions to tackle environmental challenges in the region, Mulemangabo said, urging residents and government alike to take action.

"If they leave this waste lying in the street, in the gutters, it ends up at the Ruzizi dam, and this creates a lot of difficulties for us,” said Ljovy Mulemangabo, provincial director of SNEL for South Kivu and Maniema.