From: Dickens Wasonga
Date: Mon, Sep 9, 2013 at 2:58 PM
Subject: HOMA BAY SEWERAGE AND TREATMENT PLANT TO BE REHABILITATED BY LVEMP
To: jaluo karjaluo jaluo@jaluo.com

By Dickens Wasonga.

There is good news for the residents of Homa Bay town. Plans are at advanced stage to rehabilitate and expand the sewerage and treatment plant built in 1979 and whose operations stalled due to frequent mechanical break downs.

According to Dr. John Okungu a water specialist with Lake Victoria Environment Management program, already a detailed design has been done and Ksh 100 million set aside to do the rehabilitation and expansion works.

This will come as a relief not only to the residents of Homa Bay but also to all who depends on lake Victoria given concerns were being raised amongst various stakeholder s that raw waste could be getting its way into the lake due to malfunction of the plant.

Speaking to the press after a tour of the facility last week, Dr Okungu revealed that although the plant was meant to treat a capacity of 250,000 cubic meters of waste, it was doing only 150,000 cubic meters.

This is despite the fact that the population of the town has tremendously continued to grow over the years.

‘’ Just a half of the waste discharged from the town is treated. This is 60 percent of what was envisaged by the designers that time. Most of the sewer lines are low and soil gets into them and thus leaving many of the lines blocked’’ he noted.

To improve the coverage, the water specialist said they will work on the lines that bring waste into the plant.

He said most parts of the plant depended heavily on electricity to function and were very expensive to repair or replace. Vandalism was also rampant at the plant.

‘’most of these machines are costly to buy and maintain. The municipal council that was in charge of the facility was unable to meet the cost. Most often, electricity bills were huge and the supplier had to cut off electricity supply. This is what we have to guard against in future and it explains why we want to introduce natural ponds’’ said Dr. Okungu.

The specialist said through financial support from LVEMP 2, a consultant was hired to do a detailed design and the draft is ready. It will be for 25 years taking into consideration, the expected population growth.

He said the new design has reduced reliance on mechanized parts and allowed use of natural ponds.

A contractor will soon be engaged to do civil works. Okungu noted that in the past, focus has been in treating and reducing organic loads but omitting to take care of the nutrients discharged.

‘’ To reverse this trend we will now create artificial wetlands to take care of the nutrients and reduce the growth of weeds like hyacinth in the lake.’’ He added.

Plans are also underway to procure aquatic weed harvester to help in removal of the dreaded water hyacinth weed.

Currently scientists estimate that over 100,000 hectors of the Kenyan side of the lake is covered by the water hyacinth whose growth is fueled by the heavy pollution of the waters.

A part from the Homa Bay plant, LVEMP will also rehabilitate and expand sewerage plants in Kisumu and Bomet at a cost of Ksh. 370 million and 40 million respectively. The designs works for the two areas is also complete.

In addition, all sewerage treatment plants will now have a lab. The labs will help to check the quality of what has been treated and ready for discharge.

In Kisumu for example, Ksh. 40 million has been pumped into buying equipment for water quality lab. It will also be used to monitor and control the activities s carried out in the catchment areas.

Some areas in Homa Bay will not be served by the sewer lines. In such areas not covered, 7 exhausters will be purchased by LVEMP to help empty septic tanks. Bio-toilets sanitary facilities will also be constructed in small towns and markets.

In line with East African Community, effluent discharge standards have been established and harmonized amongst the five member states of Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda.

A memorandum of understanding has also been signed by the five states over the implementation of the same.

END.