Online Reporter
Bruce Ndlovu, [email protected]
FOR years, residents of Cowdray Park have learnt to fear the wind.
When it changes direction, smoke from the nearby Richmond Landfill, popularly known as Ngozi Mine, can descend on homes, schools and streets, forcing families to shut their doors and children to abandon classrooms in search of cleaner air.
Last Thursday, there was something residents had not felt in a long time — hope.
Their relief followed an announcement that President Mnangagwa had directed Government to intervene and find a lasting solution to the long-running crisis at the landfill, which has become a daily health and environmental headache for communities in Cowdray Park, Emakhandeni and Luveve.
During a meeting involving Government officials, the City of Bulawayo and Geo Pomona Waste Management executives in Bulawayo, Local Government and Public Works Minister Daniel Garwe said the President had expressed concern over the situation at Ngozi Mine.
For residents who have endured years of smoke, foul air and swarms of flies, the intervention has rekindled hopes that the nightmare could finally come to an end.
Cowdray Park legislator Arthur Mujeyi said residents welcomed the move as evidence that Government was responding to their plight.
“We would like to thank the President for the resolution that has been made regarding the Ngozi Mine area. We are the living embodiment of the mantra that this administration will leave no one and no place behind because we feel happy that we have been remembered through the action taken by His Excellency,” he said.
But behind the relief lies years of disruption.
For residents, Ngozi Mine has not simply been an environmental problem. The smoke has invaded classrooms, homes and neighbourhood streets, affecting learning and worsening the conditions of people with respiratory problems.
Mujeyi said the presence of schools close to the landfill had made the situation worrying.
“The people in this area have faced a lot of problems for a long time. Ngozi Mine is situated next to
two schools and when the smoke would rise here, these children would have to leave class for the day,” he said.
“If the burning started in the morning, it meant that there would be no learning for that day. So, it is very disruptive for learners at such critical levels of academic development.”
For some families, the smoke has also meant watching loved ones struggle to breathe.
“We have a lot of people who have certain conditions that were worsened by the smoke emanating from Ngozi Mine. Every once in a while, you’d get a call and be told that an old lady was now critically ill because of the smoke that was coming from that area,” said Mujeyi.
With temperatures expected to rise in the coming weeks and months, residents are also worried about the worsening effects of the landfill, including the proliferation of flies.
Elderly resident Bongani Khumalo said the smoke is not an abstract environmental concern. She says its effects can be felt physically whenever it settles over the suburb.
“I don’t know what exactly is being burnt at Ngozi Mine, but when you inhale the smoke, it is very painful. Even at night, you could feel the pain spreading from your nose to your chest,” she said.
But Khumalo’s greatest fear is not necessarily what the smoke could do to her. It is what years of exposure could mean for children growing up in Cowdray Park.
“As an elderly person, I am not worried about the smoke because my time in this world is limited. I am a bit more worried about my grandchildren because all this smoke they are inhaling will affect them in the future,” she said.
At Cowdray Park Secondary School, the landfill’s impact has also been felt by teachers and pupils.
School Development Committee chairperson Mary Munemo said smoke from the landfill had at times made teaching almost impossible.
“As a resident of Section 5B, we have faced a lot of problems related to the smoke coming from
Ngozi Mine. Sometimes teachers can’t even teach because some are asthmatic and this smoke was standing in the way of the execution of their duties,” she said.
She recalled one incident when a parents’ meeting had to be abandoned after smoke engulfed the school.
“I remember at one time we intended to hold a meeting here between parents and teachers, but the smoke rose up and we could not even see each other. We ended up cancelling it and those are the kind of situations that we are facing daily,” she said.
For young people in the suburb, the Government intervention has brought another possibility that the landfill crisis could eventually become an opportunity for development and employment.
Emanuel Nkomo welcomed the involvement of Geo Pomona Waste Management, saying Bulawayo could benefit from waste-management developments similar to those being implemented in Harare.
“As a resident, I was happy that Geo Pomona is now going to enter the picture and we will have similar developments to those that we see in Harare. Bulawayo is a smart city and a change like this can only enhance the quality of life for residents,” he said.
Nkomo said locals, particularly young people, were hopeful that the intervention would create jobs while improving the health of residents.
“As a young person, I hope that this means that we shall have a lot more employment opportunities coming for local youth. It’s also my hope that we will see a decrease in the number of respiratory illnesses that were now becoming prevalent in Cowdray Park,” he said.
The smoke that has for years become part of the Cowdray Park landscape has not disappeared overnight, but the announcement of Government intervention has given residents something they have long wanted — the belief that they may finally be able to live, learn and raise their families without having to watch the sky for smoke.
For a community that has spent years holding its breath, their hope is that the next change in the wind will no longer determine whether they can breathe freely.
