KATHMANDU, March 1: The Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) will impose a fine ranging from Rs 5,000 and Rs 15,000 to individuals caught littering in public places.
The KMC’s Environment Management Department stated that individuals who dispose of, place, or dump waste from their house compounds or premises onto roads, sidewalks, or other public spaces within the KMC area will face a fine ranging from Rs 5,000 to Rs 15,000.
Sarita Rai, the head of the KMC's Environment Management Department, stated that improper waste disposal causes unpleasant odors and severely impacts public health, which is why KMC has completely banned the practice.
The KMC clarified that its monitoring team will take action against individuals found disposing of waste in public places, in accordance with Section (c) of the Environment and Natural Resource Conservation Act, 2020.
In the meantime, KMC has decided to designate six areas in all 32 wards as dumping sites to improve waste management. The Environment Management Department has stated that it is implementing new arrangements to enhance the convenience and efficiency of waste management.
Rai explained that KMC will set up one transfer station in each of the six areas, and the final waste disposal will occur at the Banchare Danda landfill site. To facilitate this, KMC has designated areas in all 32 wards based on geography and population.
The KMC has assigned waste management responsibility to the producers of the waste. According to Rai, the Waste Management Act, 2068 BS, and the Kathmandu Metropolitan Environment and Natural Resource Conservation Act, 2077 BS, require waste to be classified at the source.
Currently, wards 5, 10, 24, 25, 26, and 27 of the metropolis are classifying waste at the source. KMC plans to extend this waste classification and management to other wards soon. Of the waste produced at the source, 20 percent will go to the Banchare Danda landfill, and the rest will be managed by service providers.
Currently, the 18 local levels of the Kathmandu Valley generate 1,600 metric tons of waste on a daily basis. After the Sisdol waste management site filled up, authorities have been managing the waste at the Banchare Danda site for the past 2.5 years.