Abstract
Collection of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is important in every waste management program. Communal container collection systems appear most prevalent in many developing countries. However, this collection system is associated with problems such as overflow of waste containers, ground dumping at collection sites, and open/indiscriminate dumping at unauthorized places. The spatial distribution of these activities present potential contamination challenges to water resources. Spatial information on Municipal Solid Waste Collection/Dump Sites (MSWCS) is essential for Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM) decision-making, including siting and collection route planning, and dumps cleanup. Integration of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) present a platform to capture, map, and analyze spatial MSWM issues. This study applied GIS and GPS technologies to map MSWCS in Wa town, Ghana. Wa Municipality waste collection system efficiency was analyzed based on spatial availability of communal containers. A GIS model was developed and used to analyze proximity of MSWCS to boreholes drinking water sources. A pollution risk map was also developed to analyze the potential impact of indiscriminate dumps on hand-dug wells and surface water in Wa. The results reveal poor management in a significant number (about 67%) of MSWCS sites. Fifteen percent of mechanized boreholes failed the minimum proximity requirement (≥100 m) of the model. This study findings illustrate that MSWM in developing countries may be improved using GIS and GPS technologies. The approach used for Wa could be replicated in other towns in Ghana and other developing nations with similar MSWM problems to enhance policy and management decision-making.
Highlights
Collection of municipal solid waste (MSW) is an important step in every waste management program
This study demonstrated how Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) can be used to enhance decision making on MSW and water management
The creation of GIS geodatabases and maps for Wa town can be utilized by MSW and water resources managers for MSW and water management
Summary
Collection of municipal solid waste (MSW) is an important step in every waste management program. It is one of the greatest challenges facing waste managers worldwide. Irrespective of the waste management method to be employed, the waste must first be collected. Collection processes may be tailored to meet the goal of the intended waste management method such as resource recovery or landfilling. The concept of house-to-house is most common especially for domestic MSW collection in most developed countries [1] [2]. The utilization of this concept has generally been very low in developing countries due to numerous challenges including financial and economic problems [3]
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