Characterization of Commercial Solid Waste in Benin Metropolis, Nigeria

Transcription

1 Journal of Emerging Trends in Engineering and Applied Sciences (JETEAS) 3(5): Scholarlink Research Institute Journals, 2012 (ISSN: ) jeteas.scholarlinkresearch.org Characterization of Commercial Solid Waste in Benin Metropolis, Nigeria Dennis Iyeke Igbinomwanhia Mechanical Engineering Department University Of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria Abstract Due to the influx of people from the rural area and neighbouring states, Benin City the ancient City of Benin kingdom experienced tremendous expansion and developed into a metropolis and this has resulted to high level of commercial activities generating large quantity of solid waste. Among the multitude of problems existing in Benin metropolis, solid waste generated from commercial activities appears to be the most prominent in recent years due to poor management. Solid waste is seen in huge heaps in the open market places and around buildings having one business activity or the other. Open air dumping and open air incineration of solid waste at the approved dumpsite is currently the official practice in Benin metropolis. The practice of dumping solid waste in a hole or setting it on open air fire without pollution control makes solid waste a liability and it is not sustainable as there is no financial return at the end point of the waste. The first major step in planning a solid waste management that can be sustainable is the determination of the components of the waste otherwise known as characterisation. The purpose of this research was therefore commercial solid waste characterisation in Benin metropolis in Nigeria. The work reported in this paper involved the characterization of commercial solid waste in Benin metropolis in Nigeria. A site-specific study was carried out to determine the components of commercial solid waste generation in Benin metropolis. Structured questionnaires were also applied to collect primary information from commercial units. The study showed that about 45% of compostable materials and about 46% of recyclable solid waste are generated from commercial source in Benin metropolis. Some useful suggestions that will help to improve the commercial solid waste management situation in the metropolis have been presented. Keywords: commercial, solid waste, characterisation, composition, disposal, management, Benin metropolis INTRODUCTION Municipal solid waste (MSW) is generated from residential and commercial sources. Municipal solid waste is generally made up of paper, vegetable matter, plastics, metals, textiles, rubber, and glass (USEPA 2002, Garg, 2009). Commercial solid waste disposal is a major concern in Benin metropolis because the local government authorities are solely in charge of the disposal of solid waste especially those generated in the open market place. Solid waste is seen in huge heaps in the open market places and around commercial centers in Benin metropolis and most urban center in Nigeria. Living with solid waste littered around appears to be an acceptable way of life among the people in the metropolis in recent years. Solid waste management is commonly seen of in Nigeria as simply "pick up the waste and go dump it in a hole at the dumpsite. Burying waste in the ground certainly appears to be inefficient materials management (McDougall, et al, 2001). In Benin metropolis solid waste management practice at the approved dumpsite is simple. The waste disposal trucks drive in through the access roads and dump their waste. Other vehicles that deliver waste to the site simply dump their waste indiscriminately by the road sides. Since there are no means for containment, solid waste often spreads into the main road, blocking traffic and causing social disorder. The workers at the dumpsites use shovel to manually push the waste from the road and try to spread them as much as their strength can go. Thereafter, open air incineration without pollution control is carried out on the waste for volume reduction. In fact the practice of dumping solid waste in a hole or setting it on open air fire without pollution control makes solid waste a liability and it is not sustainable as there is no financial return at the end point of the waste. The first major step in planning a solid waste management that can be sustainable is characterization. Waste characterization is a waste stream analysis which involves a logical and systematic approach to obtaining and analyzing data on one or more waste streams or sub-streams. The analysis usually provides - the composition of the waste stream and an estimate of the quantity of the waste stream (EPA Ireland, 1996). There is currently no agreed international standard for waste stream analysis or waste characterization although many countries have national procedures (EPA, Ireland, 1996). However there are two basic approaches to estimating quantities of municipal solid waste. The first method, Site-Specific Study, involves sampling, sorting, and weighing the individual components of the waste stream. This method is 834

2 useful in defining a local waste stream, especially if large numbers of samples are taken over several seasons (USEPA, 2006). The second approach to quantifying and characterizing the municipal solid waste stream is the material flows approach. The material flows methodology is based on production data (by weight) for the materials and products in the waste stream (USEPA, 2006) trend on 10th April 2000 (Edo State Ministry of environment, 2010). The Edo State waste management board was then created in the ministry of environment to oversee the waste management activities in the state. In addition the environmental departments were also created in the Local government council to oversee the waste management activities at the local government level. The work reported in this paper therefore involved Commercial solid waste characterization in Benin Metropolis using Site-specific study. Background Information of Study Site Benin City was the capital of the ancient Benin kingdom but as a result of the influx of people from the rural area and neighbouring states the City experienced tremendous expansion and developed into a metropolis. Benin metropolis is currently the head quarter of Edo State of Nigeria and is made up of three local government area - Oredo, Egor and Ikpoba-Okha (see fig. 1). There are three (3) geographical zones in Benin metropolis - traditional core, transitional zone and, outer zone (Ikelegbe and Ogeah, 2003). The traditional core is the area in bounded by the City moat and consists of a large percentage of old mud houses. The monarch of Benin kingdom has his palace in the traditional core zone of the metropolis. The traditional core has a high percentage of the lower social class of the population in metropolis. The transitional Zone is the area that has been added to the traditional core due to development in Benin metropolis. This area has the largest proportion of the middle social class, followed by the lower social class and covers a large proportion of Egor and Ikpoba-Okha local government area of the metropolis. The outer zone is the periphery of Benin metropolis which consists of the sub-urban development at the fringe of the City. The total Population in Benin metropolis is about 1,085,676 persons (NPC, 2007). Among the multitude of problems existing in the metropolis, solid waste appears to be the most prominent in recent years. Solid waste is seen in huge heaps on any piece of unused land, around buildings and in the open market places. Living with solid waste littered around appears to be an acceptable way of life among the people in the metropolis in recent years. The management of solid waste did not become a phenomenon in Benin metropolis until the 1980s when there was massive influx of people as a result of industrial growth and urbanization from less developed part of Edo state and Nigeria and the national policy on environment was launched by the federal government on the 27th November 1989 (Environmental Law Research Institute, 2010) which led to the formation of Edo State Environmental Protection Agency (EDSEPA). EDSEPA transformed into the Ministry of Environment in line with national Fig 1 The map of Edo State of Nigeria (Edo state Government, 2007) MATERIALS AND METHODS This study was broken down into two phases A study of current waste management activities in Benin metropolis and site-specific study of commercial solid waste in Benin metropolis. The first phase of the study involves the study of published and unpublished government agencies reports/records, private agency report, personal communication with private and government waste management agencies, literature review and a preliminary field work in the Benin metropolis. The site-specific study involved the following steps selecting a representative sample, sample collection, sample analysis and the use of structured questionnaires to collect primary information from commercial unit in the metropolis. A multi-stage stratified-random sampling method was applied for the sampling process and a total of 250 commercial units were selected for the survey. Each selected commercial unit was visited several times. In the first visits, contact was made and participation consent requested. Upon approval, a second visit was made to distribute questionnaires and moderate size bags for storing their solid waste over the following seven days. The next visits were made at regular interval to collect the solid waste 835

3 generated over seven days at each commercial unit. The study was carried out in six week. RESULTS The waste generated was collected weekly, sorted and individual components were weighed and recorded. The data were further analyzed and the results from the analysis for commercial solid waste are shown in table 1. Table 1 Average Percentage of the component of commercial solid waste in Benin metropolis Components Of Commercial Solid Waste % weight Food Waste (Garbage) Plastic/Rubber Paper Metal Waste 3.21 Glass 3.89 Unclassified Combustibles 3.39 Special Waste (Ash) 0.90 Unclassified Incombustibles(Ceramics) 3.95 Total Solid Waste 100 Table 2 Average Percentage of the component of commercial solid waste in Benin metropolis DISCUSSION Solid wastes are the most conspicuous and repugnant aspect of the environmental problem that are encountered in Benin metropolis (Okojie, et al 2002). Management of solid waste has become a national issue because of the nuisance created by solid waste generated from commercial activities. A total of kg of commercial waste was collected and this gave an average of 44.96% of Garbage, 25.43% of plastic waste, 14.27% of paper waste, 3.21% of metal waste, 3.89% of glass, and 8.24% of other waste (ceramics, foam, clothes etc) in Benin Metropolis as shown in table 1. The percentage of plastics and paper waste are quite high for commercial waste. This can be well understood if we consider the business activities in Benin metropolis which involve sale of material packaged with plastic and paper material and the use material packaged with plastic and paper materials for services. The recent upsurge in the production of table water in Nigeria has brought with it the problem of how to contain the sudden rise in the polythene sachets that are discarded daily after the water has been drunk. Thus, polythene sachets have increased the volume of various waste plastic products requiring attention. Several solid waste management practices are used in Nigeria. These include composting, use of dumpsites, incineration and recycling. This work revealed that dumpsites option is the official general practice in Benin metropolis. Solid wastes are simply relocated from source to the dumpsites. Hence the waste is more of a liability and this makes the system not sustainable. Experimental determination of solid waste delivered at the dump sites showed that a daily average of 34,619.43Kg of solid waste was delivered at the Iguomo dump site and 226,394.88Kg of solid waste was delivered at the Uzebu dump site which gives a total of 261,014.31kg/day of solid waste delivered at the dump site. This value is a far cry compared to the expected waste generated in the metropolis. The source of the wastes delivered at the dumpsites were not indicated. However the dumpsites receives waste from all sources of waste in the metropolis. The current method of solid waste management at the dumpsites is simple. The waste disposal trucks and other vehicle that deliver waste to the site drive into the dumpsite through the access road and dump their waste. The workers at the site used shovel to manually push the waste from the road and try to spread them as much as their strength can go. Thereafter, scavengers descend on the waste to pickup recyclable materials for sale. Observation of the waste at the time of the scavenging activity at the dump sites revealed that serious decomposition has occur in the waste and this is a treat to the health of the workers. Thereafter the workers at the site set the waste on fire for volume reduction without pollution control. The solid waste dumpsites in the metropolis are former mining site where laterite was mined during the road construction work in the metropolis. The question of public health was also considered about the location of the dumpsites sites. One of the two functioning dumpsites sites at the time of this research work was located by a stream of water. This of course can cause eutrophication. Hence there is a serious indication of adverse effect on people in the metropolis as the stream is one of the source of water to the people nearby. The response of residents to solid waste issue indicates in the questionnaires showed that they have some concerns for solid waste but verbal interview with them really revealed their true disposition to 836

4 solid waste. They mention the aesthetic loss from the unsightly condition resulting from indiscriminate disposal of solid waste in the environment, but no one expressed serious concern about health. This can be explained by the fact that loose litter and garbage in the street are a normal part of daily life since it has always been there, no one cares about it and life goes on. Many people suggested that the government should put more attention to the issue of waste. Almost everyone agrees that they would like to see an improvement in solid waste management and indicated that they would be ready to pay a nominal fee if it were to improve the condition of the environment. This of course is not something that can be relied upon. It is very easy for people to indicate a willingness to pay for solid waste management service but putting it into action is what matters (Zavodska, 2003). The Private Sector Participation (PSP) operator are and the local government council are generally involved in the disposal of commercial solid waste in Benin metropolis. Interviews were conducted with workers at the dumpsite and workers of Private Sector Participation (PSP) operator and local government authorities. While some worker complained about inadequate attire for them for their work, no one showed any serious concern about health. In addition interview with the officials at Edo State Waste Management Board (ESWMB) and the Environmental department of the Local Government Councils (LGC) indicated that the basic problem associated with the solid waste management (SWM) programme is the lack of funding. This is a crippling factor in the progress of the Board and the departments. This also affects the personnel employed as the Board and the departments do not have the fund to properly train their workers. It is therefore not surprising that the Edo State Waste Management Board does not have relevant data on the basic aspect of Benin metropolis solid waste, such as daily generation and the composition of the waste. There is a daily environmental levy collection from traders at the open market and yearly environmental levies collected from commercial units by the LGC and Edo State Ministry of environment. There is serious difficulty with collection of the levies and there seem to be no accountability on where these funds actually end up. It should technically be reinvested into the solid waste management (SWM) programme. CONCLUSION This study revealed that about 44.96% of Garbage, 25.43% of plastic waste, 14.27% of paper waste, 3.21% of metal waste, 3.89% of glass, and 8.24% of other waste (ceramics, foam, clothes etc) are generated in Benin Metropolis. The study also showed that over 46% of recyclable solid waste is generated from commercial source in Benin metropolis. Hence there is a high potentials for recycling, composting, biogas production and waste to energy in Benin metropolis. FEASIBLE RECOMMENDATION The study revealed that the waste management authorities in the metropolis does not have a complete record of the registers solid waste managers in Benin metropolis as at the time of the work reported in this paper. Considering the composition and quantity of commercial solid waste generated in Benin metropolis and the equipment currently used by the registered waste managers, the dream of a clean and healthy environment is a mirage. It is therefore required that the waste management authorities should re-consider the requirements and qualification for registration as waste management agents. The study revealed that, the waste management authorities and the registered waste managers do not only lack required tools and equipment, the personnel do not have the requisite knowledge and understanding for sustainable solid waste management. There is need for the introduction of continue education training programme for personnel of the waste management authorities and the registered waste managers in the metropolis. It is obvious that funding is a major constraint in solid waste management; hence special attention should be paid to financial planning for commercial solid waste management by the Waste management authorities in the metropolis. The government should create special charges that will be paid by and business operators in the metropolis. And these charges should be dedicated to management of solid waste in general in the metropolis. The collection of these charges should be planned is such a way that the difficulties associated with the collection of levies and charges currently in the metropolis will be eliminated. This work revealed that dumpsites option is the official general practice in Benin metropolis. Solid wastes are simply relocated from source to the dumpsites. None of the waste components of the waste is utilised. Hence the waste is more of a liability and this makes the system not sustainable. A programme for solid waste utilisation that will ensure financial returns should be put in place. The Utilisation 837

5 programme should be made one of the criteria for registration as a solid waste manager. This will help to bring financial benefit to the waste manager at the end point of the waste, hence, aids the development of sustainable solid waste management system. Presently, landfill option appears to be a method that will continue to be employed, hence funding should therefore be improved for provision of sanitary landfill. Effort should also be made to obtain leachate and gas collection system from foreign sources even if they are older technology. It is better to have older technology than no technology at all (Zavodska, 2003). Finally Protective gears should be made available for the solid waste collection workers and workers at the dumpsites. Heavy boots and heavy-duty hand gloves should be provided to all as the biggest risk that they are exposed to is stepping onto object that could penetrate their legs and also sharp objects could scratch their hands when picking them up. LIMITATION OF THE STUDY Although this research has achieved its aim there were some unavoidable limitations. Firstly, the commercial zone in Benin metropolis is not defined and it was observed that a large proportion of the residential buildings had one form of small scale business activity or the other located in the buildings across the metropolis. It was also observed that (a). A large proportion of the business units were of the sizes (b). That the small business units generate small quantities of solid waste and they do not generate solid waste in regular quantity. In addition only 250 sampling units were studied. Therefore to generalise for larger group, more sampling units should have been taking across different sizes of business units. Secondly, many of the business operators were of the opinion that the study was meant to estimate the actual quantity of solid waste generated so as to determine the charges to be paid for solid waste disposal hence they declined participation and those that participated may have withheld some quantity of solid waste generated. It is therefore recommended that more enlightenment should be done to educate the business operator on the benefit of solid waste characterisation. EPA, Ireland, (1996): Municipal Waste Characterisation Environmental Law Research Institute (2010): Compilation of institutions and waste management regulations in Nigeria, Environmental Law Research Institute, (ELRI) 12 Oyinkan Abayomi Drive, Ikoyi. Garg, S.K (2009): Sewage Disposal And Air Pollution Engineering, Environmental Engineering (Vol. II), published by Khannan Publishers, New Delhi. Ikelegbe, O.O and Ogeah, F.N. (2003): Perception and Response to the challenges of Environmental sanitation Problems in Benin City and its Environs, Benin Journal of Social Science, Vol 12, No. 2. McDougall, F.R., White, P.R., Franke, M, and Hindle, P. (2001): Integrated Solid Waste Management: a Life Cycle Inventory second edition, Second edition published by Blackwell Science, 2001 National Population Commission (2007): 2006 Population and housing Census Enumerator s Manual. Federal Republic of Nigeria, Abuja Nigeria Okojie, E.S., Mokenye,I.I., Uzebu, E., Ufuoma, A., and Ayanta, B.U. 2002: Pollution Through Solid Waste, Environmental Pollution Causes, Effects and Solution. Edited by A.O.A. Ibhadode, University of Benin, Nigeria. USEPA, (2002): Municipal solid waste in the United States, 2000 Facts and Figures. USEPA (2006): Municipal solid waste in the United States, 2005 Facts and Figures. Zavodska, A. (2003). A study of residential solid waste composition and management in a selected developing country Guyana, The Journal of solid waste management and technology, Department of Civil Engineering Widener University, Chester, U.S.A. Vol.29, No. 1 REFERENCE Davis, M.L. and Masten, S.J. (2004): Principles of Environmental Engineering and Science, McGraw Hill New York. Edo State Government (2010): History of Ministry of Environment. online: 838