Abstract:
Household solid waste (HSW) constitutes a major fraction of the municipal solid waste (MSW). Knowledge of the quantities and compositions of household solid waste is a fundamental factor in planning and designing of an effective solid waste management systems for the urban centers. The aim of this study is to determine the quantity and composition of the household solid waste generated by socio-economic groups and family size in Arba Minch town. The study also examined the waste biodegradation processes in pilot-scale lysimeter bioreactor. A total of 138 households were selected from four sub-cities for the study using a stratified random sampling approach and from three different socio-economic groups (i.e., high, medium and low). A structured questioner survey was also carried out in the households to obtain data on the socio-economic status and current waste management practices of the households in the study area. The collected waste samples from all groups of households were segregated and weighted. A pilot-scale lysimeter bioreactor landfill was manufactured and loaded a 50 Kg of waste to examine the leachate quality and the gas generation volume about 3 months. Results indicated that HSW generation rate entire in the study area was 0.34 Kg/person/ day. The outcome of the study showed that food waste constitutes is the largest component in the waste mixture (41.4%) followed by yard waste (11.83%), Ash (9.5%), plastic (6.86%), and paper (6.41%). Further, biodegradable and recyclables constituents of the HSW shared about 60.73% and 18.12% of the total weight respectively. The average moisture content of the sample was found to have 64.24%. The study showed that the waste generation rate per capita per day was positively correlated with the income level of household, although it was negatively correlated with the family size in the study are. The pilot-scale examination analysis revealed that the leachate produced high organic pollutants pH (5.43-7.82); BOD5 (4680-32546 mg/L); COD (10595-75200) which can easily contaminate the surrounding water resources.
