Environment

Study Indicates 25 billion Birr Required to Build a Hazardous Chemical Disposal Facility in Ethiopia

AI SUMMARY

A feasibility study indicates that 25 billion Birr is required to construct a hazardous chemical disposal facility in Ethiopia.

Constructing a hazardous chemical disposal facility in Ethiopia requires an estimated 25 billion Birr, according to a feasibility study commissioned by the government.
The Environmental Protection Authority is currently working to secure financing and realize the project.
Since the registration of imported chemicals began in 2018, 161 million kilograms of chemicals have legally entered Ethiopia.
Ethiopia currently lacks a domestic facility for disposing of expired hazardous chemicals, forcing the country to export them using foreign currency.
Past disposal efforts include sending 905 tons of DDT and 45 tons of PCB from electrical transformers to Spain.
An unquantified amount of PCB hazardous chemicals and unregistered legacy chemicals imported prior to 2018 remain accumulated across various locations in the country.
Two organizations have been licensed to handle the disposal of certain expired chemicals locally within Ethiopia.
The greatest current challenge is the unknown quantity of chemicals that entered the country without proper registration prior to 2018.