Assessment of the impacts of Kiteezi landfill on the health of residents in Kiteezi, Kawempe division.

Abstract

The study was conducted to assess the impacts of kiteezi landfill to the health of the residents around it. This study employed a research design and it focused on the diseases that were caused as a result of the landfill and the practices employed in the reduction of such diseases around the landfill. The objectives of the study were to assess the diseases that are faced by the residents as a result of waste disposal around kiteezi landfill and to assess the methods being used to control the impacts of waste disposal on human health. The study used the slovin’s formula to determine the sample size of the respondents. Mostly qualitative data was obtained from the questionnaires which were then coded, interpreted and entered into SPSS. Data was also analyzed to give it a broader and more meaningful picture of the sample in addition to generating frequency tables and bar graphs for further interpretation. The field findings indicated that the residents around the landfill suffered from diseases such as cholera, diarrhea, typhoid, dysentery, respiratory problems and tetanus due to the waste that is disposed-off near their premises. It also reported that methods that were used to reduce the impacts of waste disposal on the health of the residents included mainly recycling, public education awareness campaigns, proper landfill management among others. It recommended that there was need to relocate the landfill to another area so as to reduce the impacts that would be caused as a result of the continued use of the landfill that is full to capacity. Also observed that there were poor roads heading to the landfill. These roads have a lot of potholes and therefore during transit of the collected garbage to the landfill, some of it is dropped off the trucks thus leaving it along the roads that causes the blockage of drainage channels. It is therefore necessary to construct better roads that head to the landfill to avoid causing discomfort to the people.