By Beverly Bizeki
MASVINGO – The long-awaited decommissioning of the Runyararo West dumpsite has been
given a new deadline of November 15, 2026, after months of delays, with council now saying all
equipment is in place to move operations to the Cambria Farm sanitary landfill finally.
Speaking at a recent full council meeting at the townhouse, Masvingo City Mayor and Ward
Four Councillor Alec Tabe said council was expecting progress now that earth-moving machines
previously seconded for Sanganai/Hlanganani Expo preparations had been returned.
“Two of our earth-moving machines that had been borrowed by the government for the Sanganai
preparations work are now back in place, and I announce that we will decommission the
Runyararo West dumpsite on November 15, going to Cambria Landfill,” said Tabe.
“We had a discussion with the Town Clerk, and we agreed that nothing will stop us from moving
because all the equipment is in place.”
Tabe said the local authority was also looking into coming up with a land use plan to ensure that
people do not keep using the land as a dumpsite.
The decommissioning has been the subject of intense legal and community pressure. In June
2025, the Masvingo High Court, sitting at Chiredzi, ordered the City of Masvingo to cease all
waste disposal activities at the Runyararo West dumpsite by December 31, 2025, following an
application by the Masvingo United Residents and Ratepayers Alliance (MURRA) and a local
resident, Kudakwashe Mago.
The applicants, represented by the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, argued that the
continued use of the dumpsite violated residents’ constitutional right to an environment that is
not harmful to health or well-being.
The deadline was subsequently missed, forcing council to race against time to transition to the
new facility.
The old dumpsite, situated close to residential areas, has long been a source of misery for
residents of Runyararo West and surrounding suburbs. For years, households were exposed to
foul smells, swarms of flies, and thick smoke from burning rubbish, including tyres, which
drifted into nearby homes. Residents repeatedly raised concerns over the health hazards, with the
site described as a “ticking time bomb”.
Ward 9 Councillor Benard Muchokwa urged council to consider acquiring skip bins for
placement in areas where litter dumping is common, saying this would help maintain cleanliness
in the city.
“There are areas where litter dumping is common; hence I urge council to consider acquiring
skip bins for placement in such places. This will go a long way in ensuring that we maintain the
hygiene,” said Muchokwa.
The new Cambria Farm sanitary landfill is expected to bring an end to the health hazards posed
by the old dumpsite. The Government availed 12 hectares of land for the project, and the first
cell was constructed at a cost of ZWL 69,915,216, reaching 98 percent physical completion as of
May 2023.
Council has also a plan to reclaim the 8.25-hectare Runyararo dumpsite and transform it into a
community asset, including the construction of a school on the former waste site.
