Responsibility for Improper Solid Waste Disposal: The Case of Addis Ababa Rubbish Dump Landslide
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Date
2019-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Improper solid waste disposal is one of the bold factors that adversely affect the health of the public and the environment. Solid wastes disposed of improperly deprive various rights of the people. The government has the obligation to ensure that the disposal of a given solid waste is not detrimental to the environment and the health and the life of the people. The obligation of the government traced from environmental undertakings particularly environmental rights, and from various human rights instruments.
Governments have the obligation to protect the people from the externality of improper solid disposal. Improper solid waste disposal can deny the rights of the people to live in a clean and healthy environment, the right to health, the right to life and other related rights. Accordingly, governments have a duty to control private conduct that has a substantial impact on the environment and provides a favorable condition that enables individuals to exercise environmental rights. More importantly, they have the obligation to prevent and minimize the damage resulted from solid waste disposal. In light of this, this research investigated the Ethiopian government’s compliance with its obligations concerning solid waste disposal. In doing so, the research pays particular attention to the Repie rubbish heap landslide. Accordingly, the research reaches to the conclusion that the Ethiopian government has failed to discharge its duty with regard to solid waste disposal, inter alia, environmental protection. This failure caused the violation of various rights of individuals resided around Repie rubbish heap including, among others, the right to clean and healthy environment, the right to life, right to health and other procedural environmental rights. The Ethiopian government is, therefore, responsible for the violations of these rights.
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Law