HARBEL, Margibi – The management of Roberts International Airport and Margibi authorities have agreed to measures that will keep the environment surrounding the airport clean.

The arrangement will see the RIA management undertake a series of projects in Unification City, the closest settlement to the airport, which is also informally known as “Smell No Taste.”

The project will install five new modern toilets in communities of Unification City at locations identified by the city corporation.

Due to limited numbers of indoor bathrooms within the city and the lack of public latrines, many residents visit the airport on a daily basis to use its bathroom facilities.

Additionally, many individuals use the airport’s surrounding land to dispose of debris.

The county administration will work with RIA’s management through the office of the acting mayor of Unification City in order to address the garbage collection and waste management issues facing the city.

Unification City, one of the most populated cities in Margibi, still remains challenged in benefiting from development projects due to what many see as a laissez-faire attitude from county leaders.

At the recent groundbreaking exercise for the construction of the new airport terminal, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf described the airport environment as dirty.

The president said it was sad to be building a new terminal when the surrounding area of the airport was marred by dirt and uncontrolled grass.

She called on Margibi’s second district lawmaker Ballah Zayzay to do more in working with the airport’s management to improve the look of the area surrounding the airport.

“We cannot leave the terminal of the airport and after a minute’s drive [and] all you see is dirt,” Sirleaf said.

She called for the demolition of unnecessary structures around the airport and added that she would like to see flowers lining the streets leading up to the airport.

Though the project has not begun, many residents who spoke to The Bush Chicken said the project­, if implemented, would greatly help in relieving them from the many constraints they face on a daily basis.

Featured photo by Jefferson Krua