Inefficient Solid Waste Management
According to the United Nations Conference on Human Settlement report, one third to one-half of solid waste generated is in the cities of most low and middle-income countries of which Ghana is no exception. These countries however lack the capacity to collect and properly dispose the waste generated. The waste usually ends up and become illegal dumps on streets, drains, open spaces, and waste lands. The National Development Policy Framework of Ghana (1996), highlights the problem of inefficient solid waste management as follows:
It has become a common practice for people to dispose of household and commercial waste into nearby drains and water bodies, thereby creating sanitation problems. Piles of uncontrolled
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It results in pollution and contamination of environmental resources, thus making the women and children in these communities not to have access to clean and productive environments. Songsore, has indicated that the outbreak of diseases is one of the problems associated with the improper disposal of waste. Open dumpsites he further states leads to the breading of mosquitoes, rodents and other bugs leading to the spread of diseases especially malaria, cholera and typhoid. Fuseini corroborates this assertion by Songsore by further adding that up to 40% of diseases reported in hospitals in Ghana is directly or indirectly as a result of inefficient waste management in the country. The prevalence of these diseases caused by ‘dirty’ environments does not only affect women and children the most, but, increases the burden of women on their time use scales. This is because, women are most affected by the ill health of family members. They bear the burden of caring for the sick. This affects their productivity at work and even their abilities to be gainfully employed to contribute to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country as their reproductive work is not accounted for in GDP …show more content…
Solid waste management according to the organization is possibly the paramount threat to public health in Monrovia. The IRIN also noted that “there is virtually no waste management sector in Liberia.” Just as in Ghana, rural poverty leads to rapid urbanization as a result of rural-urban migration. On a daily basis, people migrate from the rural area to the two main cities of Monrovia and Paynesville in search of better conditions of living. This unsustainable trend of urbanization has resulted in large volumes of waste being generated by households and small businesses. Waste management authorities, for the reasons of inadequate resources lack the capacity to collect all the waste that is generated, thus, leading to haphazard disposal, littering of streets and clogging of drains with
Entire towns and rural households that lack wastewater treatment systems discharge raw wastewater directly into rivers and streams through open lines known as “straight pipes.” (O’Dell, 2005). The lack of proper wastewater disposal promotes environmental degradation and creates potential health hazards, including contamination of drinking water sources.
Outer islands have dumpsters that are used for trash generated by workers. Most outer island work is occasional and involves few individuals; therefore waste generation is minimal. Dumpsters from Illeginni, Legan and Carlos are replaced at least quarterly, and more frequently if barge transportation is available. Wastes are shipped to the Kwajalein Solid Waste Management Yard for segregation, incineration, and/or landfilling as needed. Dumpsters from Gagan are transported to Roi-Namur for disposal. When special projects take place on these or other outer islands, additional dumpsters and waste receptacles are delivered and used as needed. Wastes from construction projects are removed from the islands at the conclusion of the projects or during the project as needed. No wastes are disposed on these islands with the exception of green wastes which are left to decompose naturally.
The most common way of getting rid of rubbish was to empty their latines and garbage into cesspits, which were then emptied into middens which is the equivalent of a landfill. Waste was also emptied into streams or rivers, like the River Thames which contaminated the water and lead to epidemics in England.
Solid waste management, the compilation, managing, and disposing of solid items that are neglected because they have failed to function or are no longer effective. Incorrect removal of municipal solid waste can create contaminated conditions, and these conditions in turn can lead to corruption of the surroundings and to outbreaks of vector-borne disease—that is, diseases caused by animals and insects. The tasks of solid waste management present complicated technical obstacles. The local government is responsible for collecting reusable, recyclable and non-biodegradable waste materials from the material recovery facilities and transporting them to the recycling centers and or to the municipal material recovery facility.
This waste should not be pressured upon a geographical area if they do not create it. A clean and healthy environment is the only thing many lesser-developed countries have to cherish.
A precise system, of which must be compliant according to government standards, is critical to maintain low levels of waste that are returned to neighboring water systems after treatment. Phase one of waste water treatment begins in the home, local businesses and community. Waste water from these buildings and surrounding areas travel through a pipe, or sewer which is sloped downward, and with the assistance of gravity, travels toward the waste water treatment plant. However, in larger communities or communities with unevenly leveled terrain, waste water cannot keep getting deeper to rely on gravity to transport the waste water and must be pumped up with the assistance of a lift station so it may continue to travel to the water treatment plant. Once the waste water arrives at the waste water treatment plant, the first step is the removal of large debris such as diapers, underwear or other non-biological substances or products.
With poor living conditions and over population can cause many forms of disease and unclean living conditions, and with poor living conditions you get the spread of airborne diseases such as tuberculosis and respiratory infections such as pneumonia. (Health poverty action). When people die of disease related deaths economic productivity declines as well as person tragedy. When this happens produ...
Hazardous waste and its proper disposal have become a major sociological problem today due to its capability of contaminating the area in which we live and its potential to be lethal to all living things. In order for the United States and the rest of the world to save itself from a potentially life threatening problem they must fix the causes which lead to the improper disposal of hazardous wastes and like materials. Some reasons that hazardous waste has become a problem in the United States today is due to the breakdown in enforcing laws for the proper disposal of such wastes, a lack of initiative on big companies behalf to spend money on proper disposal, and the ease of disposing of such wastes illegally.
School sanitation and health in Nigeria and India, targets for sustainable development, refuse management in Columbia, emergency programming, sanitation in Guinea and Thailand, and more...
Solid waste can be classified in different types, depending on their source, household waste is generally classified as municipal waste; industrial waste as hazardous waste or hospital waste as infections waste. It quite obvious that South Africa environment is deteriorated by the illegal dumping area that around here. Solid waste is a major problem this country is facing at the moment. The province that is experience this major problem is Gauteng province, this an urban area am taking about, and since it’s clear that over population is the cause of the problem. Gauteng province is an over populated than rural area .solid waste pollution is refuse or garbage that people use in their everyday life in their house, such as plastic
America and Europe are at the top of the list for most waste generated according to Waste (4). This is very visible because there’s litter on every street in the towns and cities, as well in lakes, beaches, and rivers. The book Waste by Rob Bowden states that the amount of waste produced is increasing at a rate faster than population growth. About 1.5 million computers, in the U.K, are thrown away each year and most end up in landfills. There are 3 types of waste which are Municipal Solid Waste, Industrial Waste, and Hazardous waste. MSW includes waste from public garbage cans and local dumpsters. Industrial Waste includes massive amounts of waste water that is contaminated with chemicals. Hazardous waste is the most dangerous as it presents a danger to human health and the environment. Solutions for waste disposal take time because people need to consider their lifestyle and limit the amount of waste they generate. A good start is to recycle items such as paper, cans, plastic, and clothes. This way they don’t end up in landfills, beaches, or streets. Another solution is to join organizations that go around places to recycle, or organizations that demand the reduction in the amount of products that are being
Policy is needed to regulate which course of action should be taken and how it should be implemented. Because of this, many plans and policies revolving around the management of solid waste have been put in place. Sometimes however, a particular policy can have its shortfalls, potentially resulting in its negative aspects outweighing the positive ones. According to the Conference Board of Canada Report, “Canadians dispose of more municipal solid waste per capita than any other country” (2013). Solid waste management in particular, involves many aspects, ranging from packaging waste, food waste, etc. (White & Franke 1999), hence, the following analysis revolves around household and commercial waste – referred to as Municipal Solid Waste (White & Franke. 1999) – in the Greater Vancouver Regional District. Municipal waste is a major health and environmental concern as it contributes to numerous problems like habitat destruction, surface groundwater pollution, and other forms of air, soil, and water contamination. Waste disposal methods like incineration create toxic substances, and landfills emit methane, which contributes to global warming. According to the Zero Waste Objective Report, “The impact of climate change and the increasing awareness of the role of “waste” and “wasting” in the production of greenhouse gas emissions is a constant environmental pressure… (2009). This leads to an increasing limitation of government to prevent and control the volume and toxicity of products in the waste stream and a growing need to shift responsibility to the product manufacturer.
Traditional methods of waste disposal have proven to be ineffective and have caused harmful effects on the environment. The most popular and inexpensive way to get rid of garbage is burial, but burying your problems does not necessarily mean getting rid of them. Landfill sites pose as severe ecological threats as these mass garbage dump yards overflow with trash and frequently contaminate our air, soil and water with hazardous wastes. About 400 million tons of hazardous wastes are generated each year1. A large-scale release of these materials can cause thousands of deaths and may poison the environment for many years. For example many industrial companies around the world cannot afford to enforce the strict pollution regulations set by many developed countries. This usually forces these types of companies to move to developing countries where pollution regulations are very lenient. These developing countries knowingly accept environmentally hazardous companies usually because they are in desperate need of employment. The harmful effects of these companies were clearly illustrated in the 1960s and 1970s when residents living near Minamata Bay, Japan, developed nervous disorders, tremors, and paralysis in a mysterious epidemic. The root was later found to be a local industry that had released mercury, a highly toxic element, into Minamata Bay. The disaster had claimed the lives of 400 people1. Since 1970 you can bet that a lot more than 400 people have died as a result of waste disposal. If the type of waste disposal were cheaper and effective we wouldn’t have to deal with waste problems, which still plague mankind today.
Each hospital produces daily a considerable amount of waste, and the process of management infectious waste could introduce hazards to the surrounding environment, causing additional environmental, economic, and disease burden. Small hospitals generally constitute a problem due to being either far from management sites or lack needed infrastructure even for using the minimal standards. Dumping in public water systems, leaching from landfills, or heavy use of incineration, are examples of management process that poses direct risks to the water, soil, and air.
The solid wastes are produce not only by households; it’s contributed by hospitals and corporations. Hospitals throw away bandages, use needles and latex gloves, these items hospitals throw away daily all the time because they can’t be reuse for the safety of its patients. Corporations throw away a lot of waste as well such as papers that they use whether in writing or in projects. All of these leftovers after consumptions are waste that is produced by our daily actions.