Challenges of solid waste management in the Wa municipality

Abstract

Solid waste management presents challenges to both developed and developing countries the world over. This is partly due to increasing population, expansions in towns or cities, poor town planning and inadequate funding of waste management practices. This study looks at the solid waste management practices in the Wa municipality and its associate problems. It describes the management practices in the study area; it also assesses the management practices in the Wa municipality level and the challenges that are associated with the general management. It also considers some recommendations for improving upon the solid waste management in the study area. Three hundred questionnaires were administered to respondents and all were answered and returned. The respondents include residents in the study area with age brackets of 15-45 years, also some workers of the Zoomlion Company and some officials within the waste management sector in the municipality. The study reveals that residents have been dumping waste indiscriminately within the study area; also the burning of the containers (skips) was another serious concern. Respondents were willing to pay some amount for the management companies to empty their bins but they suggested figures that were quite insufficient. The study recommends that the people of the study area be educated on good waste management practices. Management should try and convey the skips (containers) on time. The Central Government, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Civil Service Organizations (CSOs) should help to alleviate the poverty of the people of the study area.