High Court enforces dumpsite settlement into order

In a landmark decision, the High Court yesterday made a deed of settlement between the Maseru City Council (MCC) and Ha Tšosane residents a court order. 

The agreement, reached on November 17, 2025, paves the way for the closure, rehabilitation, and relocation of the notorious dumpsite, which has been a thorn in the side of the community for years.

The order marks a significant victory for the residents, who have been fighting for their rights to a clean, safe, and healthy environment. The MCC has agreed to relocate the dumpsite to Tšoeneng Landfill in Rothe and rehabilitate the existing site, converting it into a public park.

The residents, represented by Advocate Fusi Sehapi,had first petitioned the Constitutional Court in 2022, citing the MCC’s violation of their constitutional rights. 

Advocate Sehapi told theReporter yesterday that the settlement has been endorsed as a court order.

The court ruled in the residents’ favour in March 2023, ordering the MCC to relocate the dumpsite. However, the municipality failed to comply, leading to further court action.

The respondents in the case included the Maseru City Council, Ministers of Health, Tourism, Environment and Culture, and Law, and the Attorney General. 

The victory marks a pivotal moment for the community, led by applicants Taole Mangope, SetenaneSekhonyana, Raphael Teisi, ‘Mampolokeng Thamae, Palesa Mangope, ‘Mabahlakoana Kobo, and Thabo Molapo.

The residents had sought that all future waste disposal occur safely and in a regulated manner, and they called for meaningful consultation on all decisions concerning the use of Ha Tšosane for waste disposal or any potentially hazardous activities. 

As an alternative remedy, they sought the relocation of families directly affected by the dumpsite, with government providing replacement homes equal in quality and value to their current dwellings.

The residents had also argued that the MCC had unreasonably denied them access to environmental monitoring information including pollution data and audits assessing the dumpsite’s long-term impact on their health surroundings. 

They wanted the court to order MCC to cease the Tšosane dumpsite, vacate the area, and restore the site to an environmental sound state.

The settlement reached by the two partiesacknowledged the potential health risks posed by the dumpsite, including air, water, and soil-borne diseases. It also recognised the importance of engaging Ha Tšosane residents throughout the process and ensuring transparency and inclusivity.

The MCC and relevant government departments have since developed a detailed project plan for stabilising, rehabilitating, and closing the current dumpsite, as well as constructing the new sanitary landfill at Tšoeneng. 

The plan includes machinery for waste movement and excavation, encapsulation, waste mining, moving it to selected encapsulations, setting out encapsulation areas, HPE layer for encapsulation, Geo Textile Layer for encapsulation, locking the membranes with gravel along the drainage channel, planting loans and shrubs, drilling monitoring boreholes and installation piezometers.

The Town Clerk of Maseru City Council, ‘MoeaMakhakhe, appeared before the High Court of Lesotho to orally explain the Ha-Tšosane dumpsite closure, rehabilitation and relocation plan. The court will assess the MCC’s compliance with the Deed of Settlement and determine next steps.

The parties agreed that the operation of the disposal site at Ha Tšosane has to be attended to and remedied in terms of the deed of settlement. 

The respondents shall remedy the situation by effectively implementing the project titled ‘TšosaneDumpsite Stabilisation, Rehabilitation and Closure, and Tšoeneng Sanitary Landfill First Phase Design and Construction’.

The residents’ rights to a clean, safe, decent, and healthy environment, protected under Sections 27 and 36 of the Constitution of Lesotho, and Section 4 of the Environment Act of 2008, are legally enforceable and must be upheld.

The court will assess the MCC’s compliance with the Deed of Settlement and determine next steps. 

The government has allocated M20 million to the MCC to stabilise, rehabilitate and close the dumpsite.