LAGOS/Nigeria: Lagos residents are expected to witness cleaner streets and improved drainage as the Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) intensifies its ongoing Operation Deep Clean, a statewide sanitation campaign aimed at eliminating illegal refuse dumps, reducing flood risks and promoting a healthier environment across Nigeria’s commercial capital.
The renewed intervention comes as environmental authorities continue to battle indiscriminate waste disposal, a long-standing challenge that contributes to blocked drainage channels, environmental pollution and flooding, especially during the rainy season. The exercise combines large-scale waste evacuation, shoreline cleaning, enforcement of environmental regulations and public sensitisation to encourage responsible waste disposal.
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of LAWMA, Dr. Muyiwa Gbadegesin, said the agency would sustain the operation until illegal waste black spots were completely removed and compliance with environmental sanitation laws improved significantly across the state.
According to him, the latest phase of the exercise covered several communities, including Fadeyi, Shiro, Morocco Road, Somolu, Marine Beach, Mobil Road, Ajegunle, Apapa, Alimosho, Akowonjo and Itire, where LAWMA officials evacuated large volumes of refuse, cleared illegal dumpsites and removed waste from shorelines and other flood-prone areas to improve sanitation and facilitate the free flow of stormwater.
Despite the ongoing clean-up efforts, Gbadegesin expressed concern that indiscriminate waste disposal by some residents and businesses continues to undermine the state’s environmental management initiatives.
He emphasised that maintaining a clean environment requires collective responsibility, noting that government alone cannot achieve sustainable waste management without the cooperation of residents and commercial operators.
“Effective waste management is a shared responsibility. Government will continue to strengthen waste management infrastructure, improve service delivery and enforce environmental laws, but residents and businesses also have a legal obligation to patronise their assigned PSP operators and dispose of waste responsibly. Lasting environmental sustainability can only be achieved when everyone plays their part,” he said.
The LAWMA boss called for stronger collaboration among community leaders, market associations, Community Development Associations (CDAs), Private Sector Participants (PSPs) and residents to ensure cleaner neighbourhoods across Lagos.
He also disclosed that the authority had intensified joint enforcement operations along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, particularly around the Alaba Rago corridor, in collaboration with the Environmental Sanitation Task Force and the military.
According to him, the enforcement exercise is aimed at tackling indiscriminate waste disposal, dismantling illegal refuse dumps and protecting critical public infrastructure from environmental degradation.
Gbadegesin explained that combining enforcement with sustained clean-up operations would discourage environmental violations and prevent the re-emergence of black spots that have continued to pose sanitation challenges in different parts of the state.
He added that LAWMA would continue to deploy a multi-pronged strategy involving waste evacuation, law enforcement, stakeholder engagement and public enlightenment campaigns to strengthen compliance with environmental regulations and improve sanitation standards.
The ongoing exercise, he noted, also provides an opportunity to educate residents, traders and community stakeholders on practical measures for preventing illegal dumping through proper waste disposal practices, environmental monitoring and stronger community participation.
He urged residents and business owners to support the campaign by registering with their designated Private Sector Participants, properly bagging and storing household waste, avoiding indiscriminate dumping and reporting environmental violations through LAWMA’s official reporting channels.
Gbadegesin reaffirmed the authority’s commitment to sustaining Operation Deep Clean and other strategic environmental initiatives, stressing that the campaign aligns with the Lagos State Government’s vision of building a cleaner, healthier and more environmentally resilient megacity.
