The Ogun State Waste Management Authority (OGWAMA) has sanctioned seven companies for dumping refuse at illegal sites across the state.The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of OGWAMA, Abayomi Hunye, disclosed this yesterday during an interview at his office in Abeokuta, the state capital.

Hunye said the sanctions followed the agency’s discovery that the companies had engaged some members of the association of waste management vendors and recyclers to dump refuse at unauthorised locations.

He said the authority would not condone any form of illegal waste disposal by unlicensed vendors, stressing that OGWAMA would continue to enforce its rules and regulations on waste management in the state.

According to him, officials of the agency intercepted two trucks conveying waste traced to the companies at Iyana Cele, a location notorious for illegal dumping.

“We got information at Iyana Cele that someone was dumping refuse in the area, so our officials went there and intercepted two trucks. When we examined the waste materials, we saw the names of seven companies on them, and we ensured they paid the prescribed sanctions,” Hunye said.