The term Municipal sold waste (MSW) also called
urban solid waste or refuse is defined by Welsh Assembly, (2005) as a waste
type that includes predominantly household waste (domestic waste ) with
sometimes the addition of commercial wastes collected by a municipality
within a given area. They are either
solid or semi solid form and generally exclude industrial hazardous wastes. They include biodegradable waste food and kitchen
waste, green waste,
paper, glass, bottles, cans, metal and certain plastics.
Composite waste as waste clothing’s, tetra packs, waste plastics such as toys.
According to Ukpah (2010), solid waste is the term used to describe non –liquid waste materials
arising from domestic, commercial, industrial, agricultural and mining
activities, and the waste comprises of dust, food waste construction waste,
factory off cuts and radioactive wastes. Refuse or solid waste id referred to
as materials that are no more useful to the owner. For instance yesterday’s
paper is a waste to the person who brought it but it could be raw materials for
a paper mill (EBSEPA, 2010). Waste disposal otherwise know as waste management
is described as useless or discarded material or objects that arise from
residential areas, industries, agricultural and livestock activities generated
at a particular period of time which may also be important for other purposes.
Refuses
management or disposal is described by WAHEB (2001) as the system
administration of activities which provide for storage,
collection/transportation and final disposal of waste. Solid waste disposal is
characteristically one of the major Urban environmental problems in Abakaliki
and Nigeria as a whole. Problems associated with waste disposal therefore,
jointly constitutes an environmental menace, often time leading to epidemic,
emerging as a threat to community cohesion and survival. These traits add up to
enormous socio-economic diversity which must reverse as part of the overall
effort at achieving sustainable development (Aina and Adedipe, 2002).
The disp0sal of
solid waste in Urban areas of wastes being generated has gone beyond managerial
capacity the local authority and State Waste Management Agencies. The situation
is further compound by the present economic situation in the country, which has
further encouraged rural-urban migration resulting in high population density
and over stretching of the existing facilities. The direct consequences of the
present sanitation situation is high rate mortality and morbidity due to poor
sanitation related diseases. It is estimated that over 200,000 deaths occur
annually due to diarrhea diseases alone, with most of the casualties being
children (0-5 years) (Okeh C. et al (2010).