SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES (SWaMP) AFFECTING WATER POTABILITY

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1 SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES (SWaMP) AFFECTING WATER POTABILITY Dana D. Lim Journal of Educational and Human Resource Development Abstract The study investigated the solid waste management practices among the five barangays in Sogod, Southern Leyte. It described the potability of water in relation to their waste management practices. The presence of coliforms in the water samples examined indicated contamination of the drinking water in the study area, hence not fit for human consumption. The solid waste management practices of the five Barangays in Sogod in conformity with the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act were not practiced by most of the selected respondents who instead preferred direct dumping method to available space without considering the proximity of the well. Keywords: solid waste management, solid waste disposal, potability, coliforms 1.0 Introduction This study investigated the solid waste management practices among the five barangays in Sogod, Southern Leyte. Particularly, the study describes the solid waste management practices; the topography of the resident s sources of water; and the condition of the potability of water sources with respect to bacteriological properties such as total coliforms and fecal coliforms. Likewise, the study attempted to establish relationship on the solid waste management practices and the potability of water sources among the five barangays. As claimed by Gurrea (2002) the impact of solid waste disposal is more on water resources especially where the resource is used for drinking. Water sources today are subjected to increased pollution in lands that can originate from domestic waste. As such, water is polluted by pathogenic bacteria, parasites, viruses and protozoans. Also according to Dr. Virginia Seville, a former AIDS consultant at the DOH, 24,000 wells tested all over the country were found to have unsafe water for drinking. In rural areas, scientists suspect that many household wells are contaminated by substances from septic systems, abandoned wells, underground tanks, used motor oils, fertilizers, pesticides, livestock waste and dumpsites. As the earth s population continues to accelerate rapidly, domestic waste has been equated to

2 Dana D. Lim Journal of Educational and Human Resource Development 189 increase garbage and waste generation. Moreover Engr. Ruel Altejar of the Municipal Planning and Development Coordination of Sogod, said the municipality had an inadequate waste management. The program about proper disposal of household waste was implemented, but not practiced. The household wastes of the Poblacion of Sogod are collected by the municipal collectors and dumped in a roadside area where they are sorted and burned. But the collected wastes increased the garbage which resulted to unsightly, foul odor for the passersby that travel from Sogod to Tacloban, Leyte. Kiely (1997) observed that such inadequate storage of wastes provides A breeding ground for vermin flies, roaches and insects which may act as passive vectors in the transmission of diseases. No study had been conducted in the five barangays in Sogod, Southern Leyte on the investigation of household solid waste disposal in conformity with the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act that could affect the potability of water and address such problem at the household and barangay level. A program on solid waste management is designed to initiate the process of change in the solid waste practices of the people of Sogod, Southern Leyte and to ensure the potability of water sources through proper information, education and motivation. This program on solid waste helps create responsible individuals who will give importance to their environment. 2.0 Conceptual/Theoretical Framework The Waste Management Theory is a unified body of knowledge about waste and waste management. According to Enger (1998), municipalities are faced with a problem on disposing solid waste properly in households particularly in rural areas. Wastes from different households consist primarily of organic matter from garbage and food preparation and human wastes. Water quality degradation was attributed to various pollutive practices such as direct waste dumping by domestic and industrial establishments. Thus household solid waste was also a major contributor. The study is anchored theoretically on the importance of drinking water sources that in many areas may be contaminated in many ways as stated by Chiras (1998). In recent years, a number of events affecting groundwater quality have contributed to a heightened public awareness and concern on the importance and vulnerability of water resource. Keeping the environment clean and green can be the best and possible action. Thus the government is mandating to urgently operationalize the RA 9003 which is the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of The primary objective of bacterial examination in selected pump wells is the detection of total coliform and fecal pollution. These organisms are easy to detect and their presence in a sample indicates that water may be contaminated with Southern Leyte State University Vol. 2 : (2014)

3 190 organisms that can cause disease. Other variables of the study are the profile of the dump wastes in terms of kinds and volume of wastes, topography of their pump wells and scheme of operations on waste management. Fig. 1. Conceptual and theoretical framework of the study 3.0 Research Design and Methods Descriptive analytical type of design was used in this study. Through laboratory analysis of water samples, it gave the sanitary condition of water sources used by residents of the five barangays in Sogod, Southern Leyte. The descriptive-survey method was used to gather pertinent facts and information on their solid waste management practices and whether these practices affect the quality of water from their pump wells using the researcher-made survey. In finding the bacteriological properties of the water of the study areas, the laboratory analysis was used. The data gathering started by asking permission from the Mayor, Barangay Captain and the Rural Health Unit to conduct the study. As soon as permission letters were granted, the researcher visited the sampling station and gathered information about their practices on the management of their solid wastes using the researcher-made questionnaire. Three sampling sites were chosen for the collection of water samples for coliform determination. Two hundred eighty-eight residents from five barangays of Sogod, Southern Leyte particularly Salvacion, Consolacion, Mahayahay, Javier and Mac were randomly selected and were asked to respond to the questionnaire which solicit for their solid waste practices, the kinds and volume of solid waste and the topography of their pump wells. Likewise, water samples from different water sources in the study areas were collected following

4 191 the preliminaries and standard procedures for water analysis from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) which was published in the book of Standard Methods for Examination of Water and Waste Water (1992). Sterilized sampling bottles from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Region VIII were used as containers in the collection of water samples. Bottles containing the water samples were labeled and placed in a container with ice and were immediately brought to the laboratory for bacterial analysis following the Multiple-Tube Fermentation Technique. The analysis was performed by a medical technologist/ microbiologist in DOST Region VIII to determine the presence/absence of coliform bacteria in the water samples. The data gathered from the survey were evaluated using the weighted mean and percentages while average values were used for the bacteriological properties. Since there is no variance (Mode=Direct dumping), qualitative description was presented on the relationship between solid waste practices and the potability of water sources. Figure 2. Solid waste management practices of five barangays in Sogod 4.0 Results and Discussions Figure 2 revealed that direct dumping (83%) is by far the prevalent method used by the selected respondents in handling their household solid waste. This was practiced by 100% of the respondents of Barangay Mahayahay and 90% of the respondents from Barangay Maac, but least practiced by the respondents of Barangay Javier (66%). On the other hand, there were still 33% of the total respondents who practiced recycling, 24% who practiced resource reduction and 21% who used to throw their garbage in a sanitary manner. Southern Leyte State University Vol. 2 : (2014)

5 192 The selected respondents preferred direct dumping of household solid waste since it involved less time and effort. The practices of respondents on solid solid waste management were unsanitary since most respondents used direct dumping as the means of disposing solid wastes. Vaselind (2002), looks at the dump as by far the least expensive means of solid waste disposal and the method of choice for almost all inland areas. The operation of a dump site is simple thus rodents and insects are at the dump which can result to serious public health and aesthetic problems. Topography and physical features of wells are shown in Table 1. Eighty-three percent of the respondents claimed that pump wells have trees or vegetation in its surrounding; 67% described it to be near stagnant water; and 52% claimed it to be near a poultry or piggery. About 58% described the pump wells to have cemented aprons that cover two square meters and drain excess water wholly while 50% confirmed that the wells have existed between six to ten years. Seventy-two percent described the depth of the pump wells to be twenty feet from the water table. The topography and physical features of the pump wells might affect its potability since according Table 1. Topography and physical features of the well of five barangays in Sogod.

6 193 Bacteriological Analysis of Water Tabular values revealed that during the first sampling period Barangay Javier, Maac and Salvacion showed the highest amount of coliform counts. On the second sampling period only Barangay Salvacion and Javier indicated positive coliform counts. On the third sampling period, all pump wells tested positive for coliform counts. It implied that the pump wells are contaminated with coliform bacteria. Upon studying the condition of the water sources of the selected five sampling areas in Sogod in terms of bacteriological properties, Table 2 showed the total coliforms in units of the most probable number (MPN) per 100 milliliters. The measurement is the result of the concentration of organisms present at the sampling stations. The total coliform present Table 2. Total coliform count in the collected water samples. Legend: 1 above - positive < 1 below - negative CC - coliform count D - description C - condition P - potable NP - not potable means that the coliform bacteria were present at the time of sampling and the water may not be considered safe to drink. In other words, any coliform present in a drinking water is cause for action and groundwater in a properly constructed and maintained well should be free of coliform bacteria (Cano et al., 1999). The SDWA mandates that the total coliform is the indicator group to monitor potability of drinking water. Water is essential and a satisfactory supply must be made available. Every effort should be made to achieve drinking water quality as high as possible. For the safety of drinking water, water analysis is undertaken to identify the presence or absence of its total and fecal coliforms (Cano et al., 1999). The World Health Organization and the Department of Science and Technology recommend a coliform

7 194 and fecal count of zero per 100 ml for drinking water. As cited by Gurrea, drinking water standards specify that water is safe provided that testing in a specified manner does not reveal more than an average of 1 coliform per 100 ml. Table 3 shows that the water source of Barangay Javier has the highest fecal coliform counts during the two sampling periods. The result means that the source of water in Barangay Javier was positive for fecal coliforms during the two sampling periods and not potable for drinking. As observed by the researcher, during this time more wastes were disposed near the well, and animal feces were observed within the proximity of the well. Barangays Maac and Consolacion were also positive for fecal coliforms for the first and third sampling periods. Furthermore, as for Barangay Salvacion their water source was only positive for fecal coliforms during the first sampling period. Barangay Mahayahay water source was also positive for fecal coliforms in the third sampling, and this was collected during wet seasons. The wet season can help increase the water table that might be a contributing factor for fecal contamination. Rain can also leach pollutants from dumped area into ground-water supplies. Coliforms are by no means the only organisms which can cause water contamination. Since total coliforms are positive, fecal contamination was further determined. The fecal group or Escherichia coli (E. coli) is another type of coliform monitored in drinking water. These are respectively, a subgroup of the total coliform group and a single genus Table 3. Fecal coliform count in collected water samples. Legend: 1 above - positive < 1 below - negative CC - coliform count D - description C - condition P - potable NP - not potable Southern Leyte State University Vol. 2: (2014)

8 195 and specie within the fecal coliform group. If the collected sample contains a confirmed total coliform positive result, the Safe Drinking Water Act mandates additional testing for the presence of fecal coliforms or E. coli. Table 4 revealed that respondents in the selected five barangays in Sogod prefer direct dumping method in disposing their household solid waste. Recycling was the second option claimed by the selected respondents in disposing solid waste while source reduction and sanitary disposal were the least choice of handling household solid waste. The unsanitary practices of the selected respondents in disposing of their solid wastes affected the condition of the potability of their sources of water since many coliforms were present in the water samples examined. One sign of contaminants is the presence of total coliforms and fecal coliforms which originated from the solid waste disposed near the vicinity of pump wells and which had gained entrance into the water table. According to Cunningham (1997), the water pump was considered to be a definitive standard of water purity, but that is no longer true after many years, because, in some households, water pumps nearby were the dumpsite of waste materials. Since people are not concerned about their effects, household wastes are just being thrown in their backyards. Thus, these water pumps became contaminated to the point that it went far down below the standards Table 4. Solid waste management practices of five barangays and the condition of water

9 196 for potable water. Unfortunately, the people in the study area are not aware on the effect of the malpractice of solid wastes disposed near water sources. They needed an information drive, proper education on solid waste management, and there should be strict compliance. 5.0 Conclusion The solid waste management practices of five barangays in Sogod in conformity with the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2001 were not practiced by most of the selected respondents. A large number preferred direct dumping like burning and throwing garbage in the backyard or to an available space without considering the proximity of the well. Thus, it was found out that their respective pump wells were positive for coliforms. 6.0 References Cited Chiras, D.D. (1998). Environmental science a system approach to sustainable development. Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing Company. Cunningham, W.P. (1997). Environmental science a global concern. New York: McGraw-Hill Implementation, Maintenance and Restoration. Masson, Paris Enger E. & Smith B.. (1998). Environmental science. Singapore: McGraw Hill Gurrea, A.T. (2002). Physicochemico-bacteriological analysis of the controlled dump leachate: solid waste management program design (Doctoral dissertation). Cebu Normal University, Cebu City. Kiely, G. (1997). Environmental Engineering. London:Mc- Graw Hill Publishing Company Mair, A.D. (2000). Solid waste management in the Philippines: A small island experience. Retrieved from ing/media/swm_philippines -Paper.pdf Vaselind, P.A. (2002). Solid waste engineering. Stanford, California: St. Bernadette Publication. American Public Health Association. (1992). Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater (18th ed.). Washington, DC:Author Detay, M. (1997). Water Wells