Assessing the impacts of solid waste management practices on people's livelihood
Abstract
Solid waste management is among the major challenges facing urban slums in developing countries including Uganda. Urbanization and population growth are solely responsible for high increasing rate of solid waste and its improper management. In this study, the types of solid waste were identified and the quantity of solid waste generated, methods of solid waste transportation and disposal and impact of improper waste management on people’s livelihoods were highlighted. A cross sectional study was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data from 80 residents in the four village selected villages of Wanseko town council in Buliisa District western Uganda. A semi structured questionnaire was used which assessed waste types, transportation and disposal methods, solid waste impacts on people’s livelihoods and Data was analyzed using SPSS software. Food remains (35%) and plastics (21%) formed the biggest proportion of wastes generated in households. Most households stored their wastes in polythene bags (38%) and10% of the households did not have waste storage containers and kept their wastes outside the house in the open. Most of the households used wheel barrows (37%) to transport the wastes. Most respondents (43%) disposed of household waste by open burning