Solid Waste Management and Public Health Challenges: Appraisal of Local Government Capacity to Achieve Effective Environmental Governance

Ngozi Nwogwugwu,Adebola Olubunmi Ishola

doi:10.5539/ass.v15n5p1

Abstract

Solid waste management is an essential social service of the local government system in Nigeria. The lack of adequate funding of the local governments has created a situation where most of the cities are dirty as solid waste is disposed indiscriminately resulting to various public health issues. The establishment of the ecological fund has not provided effective relief to the problems of environmental governance, including solid waste management. The study examined the relationship between solid waste management and public health challenges in Ibadan city, Nigeria. The study adopted survey design, while the population of study was Ibadan city in Oyo State, Nigeria. Quantitative data was collected using validated questionnaire with response rate of 100%. Correlation coefficient and ANOVA were employed in the testing of the hypotheses. The study found that there was significant relationship between Politicization of Waste Management and Public Health Challenges (r = .325, p&lt;.05). In addition, there was significant relationship between Ineffective Management of Solid Waste and Public Health Challenges (r = .662, p&lt;.05). Indiscriminate Disposal of Solid Waste, Politicization of Solid Waste and Ineffective Management of solid waste had joint significant effect on Public Health Challenges (F(3, 296) = 22.078, Adj. R2 = .696, p&lt;0.05). The study concluded that the politicization of solid waste management in the selected local governments had resulted in ineffective management of solid wastes, with the residents being exposed to several public health challenges. It was recommended that there should be improved funding of the waste management agencies to enable them adopt modern waste disposal techniques.

Highlights

Solid waste management is among the essential services which the government is expected to provide for its citizens in Nigeria
The largest city in West Africa, and the capital of Oyo State, one of Nigeria’s 36 states is regarded as one of the dirtiest cities in Africa. This is in spite of the fact that the State government has established the Oyo Solid Waste Management Agency which is supposed to enhance the capacity of the local governments to effectively manage waste
There has been complaints from residents of the state that the private waste management companies are contracted on the basis of the political affiliation of their proprietors and that these companies lack the competence to effectively manage solid waste in the local governments, within the local government areas in the state, which exposes the residents therein to various public health challenges. It is in the light of the foregoing that this study evaluated the ability of the local governments to effectively manage solid waste in Ibadan city of Oyo state, and appraised the various public health challenges inherent in ineffective management of solid waste in the area

Summary

Introduction

It is the Local government that has the responsibility of managing waste in the country It involves the collection, transport, processing as well as proper disposal of wastes that are generated from homes, commercial entities and even industrial establishments. 347) writes that “a successful solid waste management system utilizes many functional elements associated with generation, on-site storage, collection, transfer, transport, characterization and processing, resource recovery and final disposal.” Some of those elements have not been applied in a functional manner in the management of solid waste generated in urban areas in Nigeria, including Ibadan city. The largest city in West Africa, and the capital of Oyo State, one of Nigeria’s 36 states is regarded as one of the dirtiest cities in Africa This is in spite of the fact that the State government has established the Oyo Solid Waste Management Agency which is supposed to enhance the capacity of the local governments to effectively manage waste. It is in the light of the foregoing that this study evaluated the ability of the local governments to effectively manage solid waste in Ibadan city of Oyo state, and appraised the various public health challenges inherent in ineffective management of solid waste in the area

Solid Waste Management

Public Health Implications of Ineffective Management of Solid Waste

Methodology

Findings and Discussion

Conclusion