Environmental and community impacts of waste disposal in OR Tambo District Municipality (South Africa)

Abstract

Increasing urbanization trends have seen natural ecosystems increasingly being replaced by urban development. Rapid rate of urban growth is causing social and environmental strains. The magnitude of the problem is partially reflected by the higher amount of solid waste generated. Consequently, common features of urban areas are stinking heaps of uncollected waste, waste disposed haphazardly by roadsides, open spaces, valleys, drains and rivers, non-compliance by waste disposal facilities. Spatial planning and environmental protection through rapidly growing population had influenced changes in ways at which waste was managed. The aim of this study was to identify the impact of waste management to the environment and communities in OR Tambo District Municipality. To achieve this, field observations and visits to local municipalities were conducted, water quality parameters (pH, Temperature, and Dissolved Oxygen) were measured on site using the Eutech Cyberscan series 600 portable water quality meter and water samples were taken to test for the concentration of nitrates and phosphates. A two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used for statistical analyses. Questionnaire surveys and interviews were conducted in schools and clinics adjacent to landfill sites to investigate community impacts and analysed using SPSS statistics 21. There were significant differences in dissolved oxygen and pH among sites in municipalities. There were challenges identified in communities with negative implications ranging from socially, environmentally and on health. These results highlight the need for waste minimisation, community-based waste management, environmental education, law enforcement and safe disposal in local municipalities.