Slum Ministry: Environment, Water and Sanitation
As Christians we are called to live a prophetic role in the world. The Catholic Social Teaching tells us that the common good and solidarity with those in pain and in need passes before our own personal interests.

.All created things are a sign and a revelation of the Creator who leaves an imprint everywhere. To destroy any aspect of creation is to deface the image of Christ present in all of creation. We are called not only to respect and to defend each person's rights but also to prevent the exploitation of the earth and to respect nature and the environment.

The destruction of the environment puts in jeopardy the future survival of humanity. The Church believes that we are in a position to do something.

The Document of John Paul II "Peace with God the Creator, Peace with all Creation" (1990) on the environment and development, mentions that for "Christians, their duty towards nature and creation are an essential part of their faith"

God's ownership of the world urges us to consider not only social justice, that is, just relations between people, but also ecological justice, meaning just relations between human beings, other creatures and with the earth itself. Creation is understood as a community of beings interconnected with each other and with God.

Ecological integrity is an essential part of all faith traditions and is an important issue around which dialogue, collaboration and mutual understanding can be promoted. Churches and inter-religious groups are already very involved in preventing the deterioration of creation.

In the environment of the slums and Informal Settlements, the environment due to the lack of espace and of services, suffers terribly. Much more important the persons living in that environment without clean water, sanitation, rubbish collection, infrastructures, suffer terribly. This is the work to ameliorate the environment, to get clean water and sanitation is one of the ministries in the slum parishes.

Independent Catholic News 2005 - NAIROBI - 10 October 2005 - 350 words
Churches protest against deadly dumpsite

Peaceful demonstrators in a Nairobi suburb braved attacks by marauding gangs and went ahead to demand the relocation of a dumpsite that threatens the health and security of close to a million people.

Hundreds of residents chanting slogans and waving placards marched in Dandora, in Nairobi's Eastlands, on Saturday, 1 October calling on the government and the City Council of Nairobi to relocate the dumpsite. The city's Provincial Medical Officer of Health declared it a public health hazard in March 2005.

The demonstration was organised by the Dandora Church Community (DCC), an ecumenical group, which said that, though the dumpsite was declared full five years ago, it continued to receive over 1,500 tonnes of solid waste produced in Nairobi daily, endangering the lives of over 700 000 residents.

The Problem in Korogocho and Dandora
The city of Nairobi generates over 1500 tonnes of solid waste each day, most of which is collected by the Nairobi City Council and other private companies and eventually dumped at Dandora municipal Dumpsite. The absence of a comprehensive legal framework for solid waste management in Kenya, coupled with wanton apathy on the part of duty bearers, has over the last three decades facilitated uncontrolled and indiscriminate dumping, leading to creation of one of the largest sources of human rights violations in Kenya today.

The Dandora dumpsite is located 7.5 kilometres from Nairobi Central Business District, in an area surrounded by low income residential estates. In particular, the dumpsite is adjacent to Korogocho, Dandora and Kariobangi estates, which together form a network of residential housing units for over 750 000 people. The increased demand for low income housing in Nairobi over the last three decades has meant that the dumpsite is now almost at the heart of these estates. Established by City Council in the mid 1980s, the Dandora dumpsite sprawls over a disused quarry and the grounds once allocated to "Sector 6," the last, unsuccessfully executed phase of a World Bank-Kenya government experiment in low-cost housing designed to accommodate 100,000 people. Somehow, though, plans for both housing estate and dumpsite went horribly wrong. The dumpsite is 30 solid acres of garbage.

"Years of uncontrolled and indiscriminate dumping at Dandora have given rise to mountains of industrial, medical and domestic waste for which no action has been taken other than incessant and reckless burning that leaves clouds of noxious fumes permanently hovering over the adjacent neighbourhoods," the DCC said in a statement to the press.

Chickens, pigs, goats, dogs and cats from nearby homes roam the dumpsite. Recent studies show that meat, eggs and vegetables eaten in the area are hazardous due to high levels of pollution.
Children at schools on the edge of the dumpsite are particularly at risk. The site is also a major den of the city's vicious criminals, the DCC said.

Earlier, the peaceful march turned violent when gangs of youths living in the dumpsite pelted the demonstrators with stones and bottles.

Tension remained high for over two hours as police fired in the air and battled the youths, who regrouped and ambushed the determined demonstrators.
The DCC blamed the violence on police inaction, saying Dandora Police Post ignored their request to provide the demonstrators with security.

"We asked the police to accompany us. We waited for them from 8.30am but they did not turn up. They only came at 11am when we were first attacked," Fr Daniel Moschetti MCCJ said.

Source: CISA
© Independent Catholic News 2005

Care of environment at St. John Korogocho
Between Dandora and Korogocho lies the only City Council dumping site, the cause of great health hazards (dioxin and cancer), insecurity (Mungiki and hidden illegal fire-arms), exploitation of under-paid labour.

Other churches and mosques have joined St. John Catholic Parish in asking the government to relocate the dumping site.