A local man makes his living making dolls from collected parts found in the Mbeubeuss landfill (IDRC Photo: Jean D’Aragon)

For more than three years there have been plans to relocate the landfill.

At the request of the local government, the Dakar Focus City Team, coordinated by the African Institute for Urban Management, is conducting research with local stakeholders to inform policies for safe and sustainable uses for the landfill site. The team will explore ways to develop appropriate local options to reduce health impacts, improve the environment, and create employment.  Quebec-based Econoler International is also working with the project team to examine the potential to extract methane from the landfill and qualify for carbon emissions credits under the Clean Development Mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol.

The combined research will contribute to future integrated solid waste management policies for the entire region, and will also provide solutions for the social and environmental rehabilitation of landfills throughout Africa.

Salvaging Hope 2008-10
In an impoverished suburb of Dakar, Senegal, a team from Laval University’s school of architecture embarked on an urban planning experiment to help residents rethink the future of their neighbourhood.

Dakar's Mbeubeuss Landfill: More Than Meets the Eye 2008-06
A source of curiosity and the subject of much research, the Mbeubeuss landfill in Dakar, Senegal receives more than 1 300 tonnes of garbage per day. It is also home — and a source of income — for hundreds of people.