SIAVONGA district council will soon introduce a refuse levy on all residential properties to enable it tackle the challenge of waste management in the resort town, says Chairman James Simataa
Mr Simataa said the levy had already been approved in the 2019 budget and was now in implementation stage once all logistics had been put in place.
He told the Sun in an interview that the move would also be extended to opaque beer producers because of the many empty bottles of Chibuku and other brands contributing to waste management challenges.
He said the local authority had a lot of challenges in managing waste due to lack of equipment but assured the residents that everything possible was being done to acquire more tools to improve service delivery.
“The biggest question is, do we have the prerequisites equipment or tools for us to offer these services? The good thing is that we are slowly acquiring tools which will enable us manage waste efficiently,” said Mr Simataa.
Mr. Simataa said the second-hand refuse trucks which were previously acquired before Government instructed local authorities to stop buying used vehicles, had become obsolete and a liability resulting in the local authority failing to adequately provide service to the community.
He said currently the district council had only one reliable dump truck which was not enough to cater for the whole district.