Abstract
Waste stream characteristics must be understood to tackle waste management problem in Tripoli city, Libya. It is recognized that information on both quantity and composition of generation waste is important for the effective planning of household waste handling infrastructure. So, this study is aimed to evaluating the generation, composition and density of household solid waste in Tripoli city, Libya. The study is carried out according to the Annex 2.1 of: WHO 1996. It was conducted during one week in summer, autumn and winter 2011/2012. The daily household solid waste generation assessment has been carried out for 150 Libyan families where 947 people in three main parts of Tripoli city have been chosen randomly. A questionnaire was prepared according to Buenrostro et al. 2001 and Raje et al. 2001 using door-to-door surveying. The result showed that the average of total generation quantity, daily generation rate, total volume and density were 1415 kg, 0.64 kg/person/day, 19.3 m3 and 74.4 kg/m3 respectively in Tripoli city. Household solid waste contains 36.3% organic matter and 32.5% recyclable materials (glass, paper, plastic, metals). The total generation quantity, daily generation rate, total volume and density were in Tripoli city agreed with those for African and Arabic countries. But the problem is that Tripoli suffers from insufficient municipal solid waste management and lack of sanitary landfills.
Highlights
Solid waste has been produced since the beginning of civilization
The urban population in Asia generates around 760 × 103 t of municipal solid waste (MSW) per day, and this is expected to increase to 1.8 × 106 t by 2025 [4] [5]
Solid waste management is undertaken by the local authorities
Summary
Solid waste has been produced since the beginning of civilization. During the earliest periods, solid wastes were conveniently and unobtrusively disposed of in large open land spaces, as the density of the population was low.How to cite this paper: Moftah, W.A.S., Marković, D., Moftah, O.A.S. and Nesseef, L. (2016) Characterization of Household Solid Waste and Management in Tripoli City—Libya. As a result of rapid urbanization and changes in consumption of many cities in developing countries, waste generation has increased. Solid waste management is undertaken by the local authorities These services include waste collection (either from households or district collection points) to final disposal. Inadequate management of solid waste in most cities of developing countries leads to problems that impair human and animal health and result in economic, environmental and biological losses [9]-[11]. To achieve the objectives of solid waste management and to overcome its problems, [12] proper management (storage, collection, and disposal) of solid waste requires accurate information regarding waste-generation rates, and quantities, composition, sources, and locations of waste This type of information was not available for the cities in Libya. This study aimed to estimate the household solid waste generation, composition and density in Tripoli city in Libya as first step should lead to a better understanding of the solid waste management problems in Libya and estimate the effects of some socioeconomic factors on solid waste generation
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