Waste Generation and Trend among Households in Bida Town

Abstract

Urbanization brings about an increase in population with a consequent increase in municipal solid waste generation in Bida, a town with significant economic, social, cultural, environmental, and national tourism influence as a heritage setting. However, there is a dearth of basic data for solid waste management design. This study was carried out to quantify and characterize the solid waste generated by households within Bida town. A total of 400 households were sampled using a stratified random technique based on ‘core traditional’ and ‘modern’ settings. The study employed an experimental approach involving the weighing of households’ daily solid waste generation for three consecutive days over four months using a weighing scale after sorting. The per capita waste generation and future waste generation were estimated. The results reveal that 1,085 kg of solid waste was generated at an average generation rate of 0.47 kg/capita/day in Bida. This indicates that, based on this rate, the town generated 150.49 metric tons of solid waste per day, equivalent to 55 million tons in the same year (2020). The scenario is estimated to increase to 299.58 metric tons per day at an average generation rate of 0.64 kg/capita and 1.09 billion tons for the year 2030 based on the projected population of 468,096 in the town. This study reveals a rapid increase in the rate of household solid waste generation in Bida, thus recommending modalities to exploit recycling options or convert solid waste to energy as a good solution for waste management.