Journal of Emerging Trends in Engineering and Applied Sciences: Research Areas

Abstract:
The problems associated with Municipal Solid Waste Management in developing countries, like Nigeria, have become pronounced in recent years as a result of urbanization and inadequate disposal of waste. This paper examines the current method of waste disposal in Obantoko area of Abeokuta, Ogun State, attempts to discover the most viable option of solid waste disposal in the study area and recommend ways of improving its operation. Data for this study were collected by questionnaire administration, personal observations, field trips and interviews. 57.9% of the respondents in this practice open dumping, 32.9% burn their wastes while 9.2% dump their wastes in drainages and water bodies. The study reveals that the use of open dumps is the most feasible option of solid waste disposal in the study area. However, the open dumps studied are poorly managed and there is a need to upgrade them to semi controlled landfills in order to prevent road accidents and reduce infiltration of leachate and eventual contamination of ground water. Open dumping will continue to be the most widely adopted method of disposing waste by most towns in Nigeria due to their inability to construct engineered landfills. It is therefore important to ensure that the open dumps are improved upon; they should be properly monitored so that they do not become environmental hazards.

Keywords: solid waste, disposal, open dumps, semi controlled landfill, Nigeria

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