(Business in Cameroon) - Waste from “Bois des Singes” and Bonendale neighborhoods is being dumped in the mangroves forest, South of Douala and according to Sidi Bare, the Littoral Regional Delegate of Environment, these waste destroy the mangrove ecosystem.

Waste of industrial nature is also dumped into these areas, Sidi Bare told the Cameroon Tribune. Besides dumping waste under the mangrove bushes, trees are also cut down for fuel, confirms Oumarou Garba, a resident in the area.

Waste dumped is composed of plastics and textile fabrics from households and industries, and experts say about 2000 metric tons of waste are produced daily in Douala.

HYSACAM, a waste collecting company, says that 1,350 tons of waste are disposed properly while 400 to 600 tons cannot be collected due to its inaccessibility.

Run off washes uncollected and improperly are dumping waste into the Wouri Estuary and a study by the Cameroon Mangrove Conservation Network suggests that waste are blocking the free flow of water and air hence killing plant life.