In a single day, more than fifty sewage trucks disposes wastewater at the Agua Gambia Kotu pond.

The largest foreign owned pond in The Gambia, partnering with NAWEC and NEA, has been operating for the past five years. Agua Gambia is responsible for giving wastewater treatment facility, and all the connected sewage network in The Gambia.

Contrary to their operations over the pass years, one of the country’s busiest  industrial areas, Senegambia, has been affected by the bad odious pollutions emanating from the pond site.

The process of the waste dumping is currently causing environmental pollution which is affecting business entities, and the lives of people residing in Kotu.

Amongst the oldest and biggest hotels in The Gambia, Badala Park’s CEO Jarga Lai Mboge, says his business has been immensely disrupted by the emission of bad odor from Agua Gambia pond site.

“with regards to Agua on our business has been nothing but a disaster. We have received complains from our guest and sometimes they will have to leave the hotel to another one and I will end up paying or compensating them.”
What we breath has a direct impact on our health, breathing polluted air puts one at a higher risk for asthma, cancer and other respiratory diseases.

Binta Colley, an asthmatic patient working at a near by furniture shop, disgruntled over the impact of the bad odour coming from the pond site.
“I had an asthma attack sometime ago because I could not breath properly due to the bad odour. I was told by the doctor to leave this place but it’s practically impossible at this moment because this place is my source of income.”

When the wind blows, the odor pervades few miles away from the vicinity. Everything smells normal within.

Walking or driving along the Kotu Senegambia Highway makes pedestrians and drivers to scroll their car glass or cover their nose to avoid the inhalation of the disturbing odour.

Kora Jassey, the acting CEO of Agua Gambia Kotu pond says, they have received a couple of complains from people for them to relocate or use chemicals in other to mitigate the odour.
“we don’t use chemicals to suppress the smell during filtration process because the water is finally emptied into the sea. We use micro plants such as waterlily and micro organic plants for purification,” he lamented.

Mr jassey explained that the odour is normally caused when the sewage water is mixed  with fish water and other oily components.
He also added that, the first and second pond does the filtration process.

The third and last pond are seemingly cleaned and birds of different species swim and fly all over it.

The final destination of the filtered waste passes through the bird watchers association’s habitat and finally emptied into the sea.

By: Sohna Tunkara

For Kairaba News Network