ABSTRACT

Waste management and control strategies as practiced in Nigeria urban centers have been a source of great concern due to their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics. The research  provides a conceptual and theoretical study on the effect of waste management practice on waste disposal in Nigeria. it analyzes the concept of waste and waste management. It projects the challenges and proffers strategies for effective waste management in Nigeria with a case study of Eket ,ocal government in Akwa Ibom state

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTIPON

1.1 Background of The Study

Increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have caused the temperature of the earth to rise by 0.6 cover the last 100 years. The ten (10) warmest years of the 20th century all occurred in the last 15 years of the century and 1998 was the warmest year on record (www.defra.gov.uk). Thermal expansion and glacier melting are causing sea level to rise, rises in sea level can increase the salinity of freshwater throughout the world and cause coastal lands to be washed under ocean exposing populations to increased risk of flooding, patterns of precipitation are changing with greater like hood of extreme events and more areas subject to water stress warmer water and increased humidity may encourage tropical cyclone and changing wave patterns could produce more tidal waves and strong beach erosion on the coast. With consequences for agricultural production, these changes to the environment will most likely. These changes to the environment will most likely cause negative impacts on society such as flooding, lower health and decreasing in socioeconomic development. Developing countries like Nigeria are particularly at risk because of her bad waste management system and unhealthy disposal practices.  The problem of solid waste disposal is one of the most serious environmental problems facing many cities in Nigeria. Waste management plays an integral role in human activities. Various ways of managing solid waste includes disposal by either burying or burning, reduce or reusing, recycling and energy generation. Solid waste management differs in developing countries like Nigeria and in industrialized countries of the world like Germany. Several factors are responsible for the differences, a good example of these are the types of waste generated in developing countries. Contreau (1982) submitted that, in developing countries, there is much high proportion of organic and considerably less plastic waste such that the large amount of organic material makes the waste denser with greater moisture and smaller particles. Another factor identified is that the technology in use in industrialized countries are inappropriate in developing countries because of the much heavier, wetter and corrosive nature of generated waste in developing countries. Lastly, developing countries, most cities are unplanned and characterized by haphazard construction of sprawling slums with narrow roads that are inaccessible to collection vehicles, (Daskalopoulos 1998). Omotoso and Jegede (2009) observed that in recent in years, solid waste generation in metropolitan cities has increased prodigiously. They added that major high-ways have suddenly become the dunghill for many citizens. The state seems to have acquired the unenviable status of being one of the dirtiest cities in world. It is a development that has malevolently aided the environmental problems of the mega-city. Adegoke (1990) defined waste as substance and materials, which are disposed of, or required to be disposed of according to the provision of national laws. In the same vein, Oxford Dictionary (1980) defined wastes as that which is not or cannot be used, no longer of use. Consequently, of these waste materials were not well managed , they could result to serious health hazards. In Nigeria, solid waste management is constitutionally a local government function. This is not exactly the position in Eket local government, where the Eket Waste Management Board (EKWMB) exists as the sole public agency responsible for waste management in Eke metropolis. Eket Waste Management Board came into being because, it was assumed that individual Local Government Authorities were incapable of performing the function of waste management. Moreover at the time of its establishment, solid waste management situation in Eket was chaotic and embarrassing to most of her residents. Global temperature will continue to increase causing further disruption to climate patterns. Ultimately, all this can only be brought under control by engaging in sustainable waste management practices and stabilizing greenhouse gases concentrations in the atmosphere. Therefore the research intends to investigate the effect of management practice on waste disposal in Nigeria.

1.2             STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The problem confronting this research is to appraise the effect of waste management practice in Nigeria. The increase in population, industrial, commercial, technological and economic activities has resulted in the growth of volume of waste and it’s effect in our environment, therefore the formulation and implementation of effective strategy is imperative for the management of waste disposal in Nigeria.

1.3 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

1)     To investigate the effect of waste management practice on the environment.

2)     To determine the effect of solid waste on the environment

3)     To appraise the strategy for effective waste management practice

4)     To determine the management practice of EKWMB for effective waste management

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1    is there any positive effect of waste management on the environment?

2       What is the effect of solid waste in the environment?

3       What constitute the strategy for effective waste management practice?

4       What constitute the management practice of EKWMB for effective waste management practice?

1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study shall provide a structural study on solid waste

It shall investigate the effect of solid waste on the environment

The study shall analyze strategies for effective waste management practice

It shall provide a reference source of information for environmental experts.

1.6    STATEMENT OF HYPOTHESIS

H0        The volume of solid waste in the environment is low

H1        The volume of solid waste in the environment is high

H0        The effect of solid waste on the environment is  low

H1    The effect of solid waste on the environment is high

H0     The impact of EKWMB waste management practice on solid waste management is low

H1     The impact of EKWMB waste management practice on solid waste management is high

1.7    SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The study is focused on the   effect of waste management practice on waste disposal in Nigeria, with a case study of EKWMB

1.8      DEFINITION OF TERMS

SOLID WASTE

The American Public Liquid Association in 1975 defined solid waste as unwanted and useless material with insufficient liquid content to be free flowing, because of its sticky nature, solid waste has the ability to accumulating and physically insulting and degrading the environment if not well managed.

Management

Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a not-for-profit organization, or government body. Management includes the activities of setting the strategy of an organization and coordinating the efforts of its employees or volunteers to accomplish its objectives through the application of available resources, such as financial, natural, technological, and human resources. The term “management” may also refer to the people who manage an organization.

Waste

Waste and wastes are unwanted or unusable materials. Waste is any substance which is discarded after primary use, or it is worthless, defective and of no use. Examples include municipal solid waste (household trash/refuse), hazardous waste, wastewater (such as sewage, which contains bodily wastes (feces and urine) and surface runoff), radioactive waste, and others