The Basanta Hariyali, Kalika, and Gauriganesh and Shivashakti Community Forests, located in Wards 4 and 8 of Gauriganga Municipality in Kailali, are considered highly significant from the perspective of biodiversity conservation. Rich in greenery, natural beauty, and forest resources, these forest areas serve as an important biological corridor (wildlife movement corridor) connecting the Terai and Chure landscapes.
Stretching alongside the East–West Highway, this corridor is a regular movement route for wildlife. Tigers also enter the area for breeding and raising their cubs. However, this ecologically sensitive forest area has increasingly been used as a dumping site in the name of waste management, posing a serious threat to its environmental significance.
Indiscriminate dumping of waste along the highway has begun to undermine not only the natural beauty of the forest but also the entire ecosystem. The accumulation of plastic and other types of waste within the forest has had direct environmental impacts, affecting wildlife habitats, food sources, and movement routes.
Forest Areas Burdened by Waste
The growing waste management problem in the forest has created serious challenges for maintaining environmental balance and conserving biodiversity. Continuous dumping of waste for years in the ecologically sensitive Basanta forest area, which lies along the East–West Highway, has directly affected wildlife habitats, vegetation, and the broader ecosystem.
Conservationist Bijay Raj Shrestha says, “The indiscriminate disposal of waste within a biological corridor is extremely concerning. The Basanta biological corridor is a lifeline for wildlife. Dumping waste in such areas directly interferes with the natural habitats of wild animals.”
According to him, the increasing impact of waste could create long-term challenges for biodiversity conservation. Poor waste management practices also increase the risk of human–wildlife conflict. Plastic waste, chemical residues, and other pollutants reduce soil fertility, contaminate water sources, and disrupt the natural growth of vegetation. He further stressed that holding responsible authorities accountable is essential to addressing the growing environmental risks.
Senior Divisional Forest Officer Janak Padhya of the Division Forest Office, Pahalmanpur, says that operating a dumping site within forest land is a serious environmental concern. According to him, dumping waste in forests fragments wildlife habitats, reduces biodiversity, and increases the risk of soil and water pollution. “The indiscriminate disposal of waste in forest areas can create not only immediate impacts but also long-term environmental crises,” he says.
The impact of waste is not confined to the forest itself. During the monsoon, waste piled up at the dumping site is washed into streams, rivers, and other water bodies. Senior Forest Officer Bishwo Raj Pandit of the Division Forest Office, Kailali, says that this also increases the risk of plastics and various chemicals seeping into groundwater. “This can negatively affect both public health and the environment,” he says. He adds that the foul smell, visual pollution, and heaps of waste along the East–West Highway have also become a nuisance for travelers. Local resident Govinda Sharma says that the waste has begun to tarnish the image of the Basanta area, which is well known for its natural beauty.
Dumping in Forests Due to Lack of Alternatives
While environmental risks associated with waste management continue to increase, local governments are struggling with the lack of viable alternatives. Although they acknowledge that operating dumping sites within forest areas is inappropriate, most local governments say they have been compelled to do so because suitable alternative sites are unavailable.
For many years, Gauriganga Municipality has been disposing of waste within the forest area that falls under the Basanta Biological Corridor. Despite the negative impacts on wildlife, vegetation, and the overall ecosystem in this environmentally sensitive area, the lack of an immediately usable alternative site has made the problem increasingly difficult to address.
Deputy Mayor Bhoj Bahadur Bam of Gauriganga Municipality says that using the forest as a dumping site is not the municipality’s preferred choice. “We have been forced to use the forest because we could not find suitable land. This is not our choice,” he says. “We are fully aware that disposing of waste in forest areas is inappropriate, but we have no other immediately usable alternative.” According to him, the municipality is currently studying various options to identify a new waste disposal site.
The waste management problem is not limited to Gauriganga Municipality alone. Other local governments in Kailali are facing similar challenges. Bardagoriya Rural Municipality, Ghodaghodi Municipality, and Lamkichuha Municipality, among others, are also disposing of waste in forest areas.
Mayor Khadak Rawat of Ghodaghodi Municipality says, “Although the federal government has allocated a budget for waste management, the funds have remained unspent due to the lack of suitable land.” According to him, the municipality has been unable to effectively utilize the available resources and budget because it has not been able to acquire land for a waste management facility. “Even with plans and a budget in place, the biggest challenge to implementation is the lack of an appropriate site,” Rawat says. “As there is no designated place for waste disposal at the local level, we have been compelled to use forest areas as a temporary alternative.”
Local governments are therefore caught in a difficult situation. On the one hand, they are fully aware of the environmental risks posed by dumping waste in forests; on the other hand, the lack of practical alternatives has forced them to continue using forest areas for waste disposal. As a result, the issue is no longer merely a matter of weak waste management but has increasingly emerged as a structural challenge requiring long-term policy and institutional solutions.
Turning Waste into Opportunity
Amid mounting challenges in waste management, several local governments in Sudurpashchim Province have begun treating waste not as a problem but as an opportunity. These initiatives demonstrate that effective waste management solutions are possible. With scientific management, adequate investment, and active private-sector participation, waste can be transformed from an environmental burden into an economic resource, and examples of this approach are now emerging within the province.
One of the most notable examples is the Integrated Solid Waste Management Center operating in Godawari Municipality, Kailali. Collected waste is segregated, processed, and managed safely, reducing environmental pollution while laying the foundation for sustainable waste management. Built at an estimated cost of around Rs. 1 billion within the Chaukidanda Women’s Community Forest, the facility operates systems for waste segregation, processing, and recycling. According to Mayor Birendra Bhatt, waste management has become more efficient through source-level segregation, while the municipality has also been generating revenue from the system.
The waste management center has also contributed to improving the livelihoods of its workers. Priyanka Joraila, a resident of Ward No. 10 of Godawari Municipality, has been working at the center for the past four months. Previously employed at a clothing store, she now earns approximately Rs. 16,000 per month through waste segregation and management work. Another worker, Jang Bahadur Chaudhary, has been involved in the sector for nearly nine years and currently earns around Rs. 17,000 per month. While he says the work has provided stable employment, he also notes that constant exposure to waste, foul odors, and health risks remains an ongoing challenge.
Waste management in Godawari Municipality is operated by Swachha Environment Pvt. Ltd. According to the company’s operator, Govinda Rawal, around 70 percent of the collected waste is recovered as recyclable material. Organic waste is processed into compost, while recyclable materials are sent for reuse. He emphasizes that if managed properly, waste should be viewed not as a problem but as an opportunity. The company also pays annual revenue to the municipality and provides direct employment to around 100 people.
Alongside Godawari, an Integrated Solid Waste Management Center has also been established in Shuklaphanta Municipality, Kanchanpur. According to Mayor Ran Bahadur Mahara, waste had previously been disposed of in nearby forest areas, but waste management has become much easier since the center became operational a year ago. The facility was designed to manage approximately six tonnes of waste per day over a 20-year period. However, it currently receives only about three tonnes of waste daily, leading the municipality to estimate that the facility’s operational lifespan could extend to as much as 40 years.
According to him, the center has created employment opportunities for local residents, who are engaged in tasks ranging from tractor operation to waste segregation. Similar waste management infrastructure has also been developed over 22 hectares in Dhangadhi, five bighas in Shuklaphanta, and five hectares in Attariya. These projects were implemented under the Regional Urban Development Project with support from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
A solid waste management center has also been constructed in Dhangadhi Sub-Metropolitan City, although it has yet to come into full operation. In previous years, the sub-metropolitan city has contracted private companies to manage waste and generate revenue from the process. In July–August 2023, it established a micro waste segregation center with an investment of Rs. 3.155 million to generate income from non-biodegradable waste and produce compost from biodegradable waste. Around 70 tonnes of waste are collected daily from all 19 wards of the municipality. Biodegradable waste is transported to a nearby biogas plant, where it is also used for compost production.
According to Ashok Awasthi, Head of the Environment, Drinking Water, and Sanitation Management Section of Dhangadhi Sub-Metropolitan City, the municipality has contracted a private company to operate the segregation center and sell recyclable waste. The contract for the fiscal year 2024/25 was awarded to Nandadevi Sewa Kendra for Rs. 7.2 million for a period of five years. Under the agreement, the annual contract amount will increase by 10 percent each year over the five years.
These initiatives demonstrate that waste management can go beyond being merely a sanitation issue and become an important tool for environmental protection and economic development. However, the continued practice of dumping waste in environmentally sensitive forest areas remains a major concern. This highlights that the waste management challenge is not simply a matter of limited resources but is also deeply linked to effective policy implementation and the need for long-term planning and sustainable management approaches.