24 September 2011
MUSCAT -- Oman Environmental Services Holding Company SAOC (OESHCO) is firming up plans for the rollout of a number of pilot and emergency solid waste management projects next year. According to Azhar bin Haroun al Kindy, Chief Executive Officer of the wholly government-owned agency, which has the mandate to oversee the management of the solid waste sector in the Sultanate, several key initiatives will make the progression from planning and design into the implementation phase during the course of 2012.
Pending the implementation of a nationwide strategy for waste management, OESHCO has been tasked by the government with executing a number of 'emergency' and 'fast-track' projects. These initiatives will help lay the ground for the establishment of long-term waste management schemes, with the private sector set to play a lead role.
Among the 'emergency projects' identified by the government are 16 engineered landfills, 65 waste transfer stations, and four waste treatment plants. Also envisaged are fast-track schemes, notably a new landfill at Al Amerat in Muscat, a solid waste management project in Barka, a medical waste collection and disposal scheme in Dhofar Governorate, and a National Hazardous Waste Management facility at Adam in the Dakhiliya Region.
Significant progress has been achieved in the implementation of some of these fast-track ventures, according to Al Kindy. While an engineered landfill has commenced operations at Al Amerat in Muscat Governorate in February this year, Liwa in the northern Batinah region already boasts a temporary hazardous waste storage site.
However, plans for a medical incinerator in Dhofar Governorate will be on hold pending the completion of a national study on medical waste management. A much-anticipated National Hazardous Waste Management facility at Adam is also making headway with tenders for a design consultancy contract currently under evaluation. "This is a huge national project which will also handle part of the healthcare waste," he noted.
Outlining the status of various 'emergency projects', Al Kindy said a tender is due to be floated shortly for a National Baseline Study to assess the quantity and composition of solid waste.
The study is targeted for completion by the third quarter of next year. Already a number of sites have been identified for the construction of engineering landfills, waste transfer stations, and treatment plants. Actual construction work on some of these facilities is expected to get underway during 2012, said Al Kindy.
Also in various phases of feasibility study and development is a raft of region-specific waste management initiatives, as well as projects designed to tackle specific solid waste streams. In Duqm, OESHCO is working with the Duqm Steering Committee to outline a strategy for the effective management of industrial and other solid wastes expected to be generated by the future industrial hub.
At the same time, a feasibility study for the recycling of used vehicle tyres has been completed and will be rolled out in 2012, said Al Kindy.
Also on the anvil is a proposal for the recycling of electronic waste, says Al Kindy. "This is a very interesting recycling project whereby old mobile phones can be dropped into a something that's similar to a cash till. The system weighs the phone and hands out cash."
Construction and demolition waste, which accounts for roughly two-thirds of all municipal waste, will be tackled initially as part of a pilot venture, the CEO said. "We will be looking at how some countries have successfully addressed their construction waste. A tender for a feasibility study will be floated before the year-end."
Other pilot schemes in the pipelines relate to the recycling of paper waste in Muscat Governorate, rehabilitation and closure of old dumpsites in the capital region, waste managements projects in Buraimi and Sharqiya regions, and the establishment of a Waste Information System, which will serve as a crucial database for prospective private sector investors, the CEO said.
OESHCO was set up in July 2007 on the recommendations of the National Solid Waste Management Strategy Report commissioned by the government. It was granted legal status through a Royal Decree promulgated in August 2009.
MUSCAT -- Oman Environmental Services Holding Company SAOC (OESHCO) is firming up plans for the rollout of a number of pilot and emergency solid waste management projects next year. According to Azhar bin Haroun al Kindy, Chief Executive Officer of the wholly government-owned agency, which has the mandate to oversee the management of the solid waste sector in the Sultanate, several key initiatives will make the progression from planning and design into the implementation phase during the course of 2012.
Pending the implementation of a nationwide strategy for waste management, OESHCO has been tasked by the government with executing a number of 'emergency' and 'fast-track' projects. These initiatives will help lay the ground for the establishment of long-term waste management schemes, with the private sector set to play a lead role.
Among the 'emergency projects' identified by the government are 16 engineered landfills, 65 waste transfer stations, and four waste treatment plants. Also envisaged are fast-track schemes, notably a new landfill at Al Amerat in Muscat, a solid waste management project in Barka, a medical waste collection and disposal scheme in Dhofar Governorate, and a National Hazardous Waste Management facility at Adam in the Dakhiliya Region.
Significant progress has been achieved in the implementation of some of these fast-track ventures, according to Al Kindy. While an engineered landfill has commenced operations at Al Amerat in Muscat Governorate in February this year, Liwa in the northern Batinah region already boasts a temporary hazardous waste storage site.
However, plans for a medical incinerator in Dhofar Governorate will be on hold pending the completion of a national study on medical waste management. A much-anticipated National Hazardous Waste Management facility at Adam is also making headway with tenders for a design consultancy contract currently under evaluation. "This is a huge national project which will also handle part of the healthcare waste," he noted.
Outlining the status of various 'emergency projects', Al Kindy said a tender is due to be floated shortly for a National Baseline Study to assess the quantity and composition of solid waste.
The study is targeted for completion by the third quarter of next year. Already a number of sites have been identified for the construction of engineering landfills, waste transfer stations, and treatment plants. Actual construction work on some of these facilities is expected to get underway during 2012, said Al Kindy.
Also in various phases of feasibility study and development is a raft of region-specific waste management initiatives, as well as projects designed to tackle specific solid waste streams. In Duqm, OESHCO is working with the Duqm Steering Committee to outline a strategy for the effective management of industrial and other solid wastes expected to be generated by the future industrial hub.
At the same time, a feasibility study for the recycling of used vehicle tyres has been completed and will be rolled out in 2012, said Al Kindy.
Also on the anvil is a proposal for the recycling of electronic waste, says Al Kindy. "This is a very interesting recycling project whereby old mobile phones can be dropped into a something that's similar to a cash till. The system weighs the phone and hands out cash."
Construction and demolition waste, which accounts for roughly two-thirds of all municipal waste, will be tackled initially as part of a pilot venture, the CEO said. "We will be looking at how some countries have successfully addressed their construction waste. A tender for a feasibility study will be floated before the year-end."
Other pilot schemes in the pipelines relate to the recycling of paper waste in Muscat Governorate, rehabilitation and closure of old dumpsites in the capital region, waste managements projects in Buraimi and Sharqiya regions, and the establishment of a Waste Information System, which will serve as a crucial database for prospective private sector investors, the CEO said.
OESHCO was set up in July 2007 on the recommendations of the National Solid Waste Management Strategy Report commissioned by the government. It was granted legal status through a Royal Decree promulgated in August 2009.
© Oman Daily Observer 2011
