Efficiency of Solid Waste Collection Services: Case Study of Kumasi Metropolis

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Date
May, 2016
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Abstract
Indiscriminate dumping, irregular collection of waste generated and inadequate resources are the key problems facing solid waste management in the Kumasi Metropolis. This study was carried out in order to determine the efficiency of three out of seven solid waste collection companies (A, B, C) in the Kumasi Metropolis through the assessment of their scope of operations, operational efficiency regarding time spent and trips made and operational cost as it related to customers’ satisfaction. Survey tools used for this study included questionnaires, key informant interviews and mapping of operational zones. The study identified the various pickup points, distances between pickup points, haul distances, haul times, quantity of waste collected, operational cost and customers’ satisfaction for both communal and house to house collection services. Major conclusions drawn from the study were distribution of both communal skips and house to house bins influenced resources, hence the efficiency of collection; the three companies were 73.42% (58 tonnnes) efficient of total solid waste (79 tonnes) previously collected and deposited at the landfill per day based on records obtained from the landfill; the communal collection minimum and maximum pickup up times (mins) per skip were determined to be 8 and 18 respectively while the minimum and maximum house to house collection pickup times (mins) per household bin picked were calculated to be 1.26 and 1.29 as well as 100 and 207 per trip respectively; companies which collected higher number of household bins and communal skips at low pickup time were efficient; Companies which served higher number of customers were found to operate at the minimum cost, thus efficient; cost of collection for house to house service was determined to be higher than that of communal service; more customers were satisfied with services of companies which operated at minimum cost. It is hereby recommended that further study should be carried out in other operational zones of the selected solid waste companies to find out if the collection and cost efficiency will be the same as determined by this study; KMA to conduct periodic checks for both solid waste collection companies and communal caretakers to ensure that they operate according to standards; customers of both communal and house to house services should be educated on domestic management of solid waste; the weighbridge to be repaired or replaced for measurement accuracy of solid waste at the landfill; the solid waste collection companies should be encouraged to increase the quantity of solid waste to be collected; and the project for the construction of sheds with concrete floors at the various communal skip sites should continue so as to prevent leachate from seeping into soils during rains.
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A Thesis submitted to the Department of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Water Supply and Environmental Sanitation, 2016.
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