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Article
Publication date: 11 January 2022

Andrew Ebekozien, Clinton Aigbavboa, Angeline Ngozika Chibuike Nwaole, Ibeabuchi Lawrence Aginah and Marvelous Aigbedion

In less than a decade to sustainable development goals (SDGs) there is a threat of household waste emanating from sub-urban sprawl especially in developing countries. Private…

Abstract

Purpose

In less than a decade to sustainable development goals (SDGs) there is a threat of household waste emanating from sub-urban sprawl especially in developing countries. Private approaches with government-enabling environments have been proved a successful platform for urban services such as housing provision and telecommunication in developing cities. Still private solid waste management (PSWM) seems different in Nigeria. Therefore, this paper aims to investigate the possible perceived hindrances facing PSWM organisations and proffer feasible policies to enhance sustainable clean and healthy cities.

Design/methodology/approach

Seven communities within Benin City sub-urban environs were adopted as the study area to accomplish the research’s objectives via a phenomenology type of qualitative research design. The study analysed the collated data from the knowledgeable participants via a thematic approach.

Findings

Lax legislative, absence of institutional framework, inadequate economic motivation, inadequate technical operations, among others, emerged as the encumbrances faced by PSWM firms. Wastes dumped along unethical locations such as streets, roads, uncompleted buildings, culverts and drainage channels, and undeveloped plots emerged as the encumbrance outcomes. Findings show that proffering feasible policy solutions to tackle identified hindrances can promote the achievement of SDGs across semi-urban locations in Nigeria.

Research limitations/implications

This research is restricted to urban household waste management by PSWM within Nigeria. Also, the study identified the challenges and proffer policy solutions to enhance improved clean environment within the sub-urban and urban cities.

Practical implications

As part of this study’s implications, results from this research intend to guide government policymakers and PSWM firms to encourage collaboration in designing appropriate strategic and educational programmes for the householders (customers) in sub-cities. It will be achieved via feasible policies that are tailored towards achieving sustainable health and environment-friendly sub-urban locations.

Originality/value

This paper intends to enhance proper PSWM and create sustainable cities via collaboration. Also, the paper engaged key stakeholders via a qualitative research design to proffer possible solutions to the menace of sub-urban and urban household waste management.

Details

Facilities, vol. 40 no. 5/6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-2772

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 August 2018

Aman Luthra

Rapid economic growth and urbanization in India have increased demand for municipal services. In response, privatization has emerged as a policy solution to a growing deficit in…

Abstract

Purpose

Rapid economic growth and urbanization in India have increased demand for municipal services. In response, privatization has emerged as a policy solution to a growing deficit in urban infrastructure and service provision. But, privatization assumes prior state ownership of those services. Certain waste management services, specifically doorstep waste collection, have never been truly public in the sense that private informal actors have historically provided them. The purpose of this paper is to examine the tensions and contradictions between two related policy imperatives – universal service provision and privatization – that appear to be guiding the municipalization of solid waste collection services in urban India.

Design/methodology/approach

Research for this paper relies on detailed analysis of key government documents (reports of various committees, regulations and laws) that have been important in defining municipal responsibilities for waste management in India from 1990 to 2016. In addition, where appropriate, research materials from the author’s doctoral dissertation fieldwork in Delhi from October 2012 to December 2013 have also been used.

Findings

An analysis of key policy documents revealed that the government’s efforts to document deficits in service provision ignored, and thus rendered invisible, the work of the informal sector. While a consensus on the need for universal waste collection service had emerged as early as the late 1990s, it was not until 2016 that municipal responsibility for service provision was codified into law. The rules issued in 2016 municipalized this responsibility while simultaneously opening up spaces for the inclusion of the informal sector in waste collection service provision.

Originality/value

This paper fills a gap in the existing literature on how policy interventions have brought the space of the doorstep into the ambit of the state such that it allows for the opening up of those spaces for the entry of private capital. Under the guise of universal service provision, the shift to municipalization and outsourcing to private corporations is not in fact privatization – service provision is already private – but involves the dispossession of informal workers and the transfer of their resource to the formal, corporate sector.

Details

Society and Business Review, vol. 14 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1746-5680

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 12 July 2021

Giulia Romano, Claudio Marciano and Maria Silvia Fiorelli

Chapter 3 discusses existing management models and corporate governance best practices for waste management firms. It provides some relevant experiences across Europe. It offers a…

Abstract

Chapter 3 discusses existing management models and corporate governance best practices for waste management firms. It provides some relevant experiences across Europe. It offers a focus on the ongoing remunicipalization process in the public service provision and urban waste management.

Details

Best Practices in Urban Solid Waste Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80043-889-7

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 June 2017

Diego Coletto and Lieselot Bisschop

The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into the role and practices of informal waste pickers and the implications for waste management policy in urban contexts of the…

2006

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into the role and practices of informal waste pickers and the implications for waste management policy in urban contexts of the Global South.

Design/methodology/approach

Qualitative case studies were used, including interviews, observations and document analyses. The authors compared informal waste management in two cities of the Global South: Accra (Ghana) and Porto Alegre (Brazil).

Findings

The analysis points out that informal waste pickers play a crucial role in the implementation of waste policies in both cities, despite differing economic, social and institutional contexts. The study of the waste management system also points to multiple connections between informal and formal parts of the economy. Although the informal waste pickers are integral to the waste management systems, their economically disadvantaged position excludes them from the formal labour market. Faced with these challenges, they develop creative solutions to guarantee their livelihood and gain more effective collective voice.

Research limitations/implications

The comparison of two case studies, conducted about the same social phenomenon in two different economic, institutional and social contexts, has limited generalisability but is theoretically and practically important.

Practical implications

The findings are relevant to policy-makers who deal with urban waste management and for organisations who develop support actions for informal workers.

Originality/value

The authors draw on a comparison of qualitative case studies to explore the multidimensionality of the waste picker’s phenomenon. This paper sparks discussion among scholars and experts who study the informal economy from different perspectives, in this case bridging insights from sociology and victimology.

Details

International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. 37 no. 5/6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-333X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 January 2022

Andrew Ebekozien, Clinton Aigbavboa, Faith Ebekozien Emuchay, Marvelous Aigbedion, Iliye Faith Ogbaini and Andrew Igiebor Awo-Osagie

In less than a decade to Sustainable Development Goals, the urban solid waste (USW) emanating from households, especially in developing countries, calls for concern. Several…

Abstract

Purpose

In less than a decade to Sustainable Development Goals, the urban solid waste (USW) emanating from households, especially in developing countries, calls for concern. Several policies have been suggested and some implemented, but the challenges facing USW management remain, especially in developing nations. Past studies demonstrated that the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) technologies can be used to improve urban public services. The role of 4IR in mitigating the challenges of USW is yet to receive in-depth research in Nigeria. Thus, the study investigated 4IR role regarding mitigating the challenges facing USW.

Design/methodology/approach

Seven cities across Nigeria, including the Federal Capital Territory, were used as the study area to achieve the research objectives via a qualitative research design. Thirty-two semi-structured interviews were conducted from selected regulators, households, legislators, ICT experts, NGOs and waste managers. A thematic approach was adopted to analyse the collated data.

Findings

Findings group the USW challenges into five categories. The 4IR technologies can be used to manage USW; thus, they create an opportunity to integrate and promote sustainable clean cities.

Research limitations/implications

This study is confined to the 4IR role concerning mitigating the encumbrances facing USW in Nigeria and proffered feasible policies to enhance a sustainable healthy environment.

Practical implications

Proffered policy solutions will stir policymakers and construction practitioners to think outside the box and offer and better understand how 4IR technologies can be utilised to mitigate those challenges. The outcome will create sustainable clean cities as part of the implication contribution to the body of knowledge.

Originality/value

Evidence from the reviewed literature shows a paucity of literature focussed on 4IR roles in mitigating the encumbrances facing USW in Nigeria. Therefore, this study contributes to the existing research work on 4IR concerning its role in enhancing USW in Nigeria and, by extension, to other developing countries.

Details

International Journal of Building Pathology and Adaptation, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2398-4708

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 12 July 2021

Giulia Romano, Claudio Marciano and Maria Silvia Fiorelli

Chapter 5 deals with key drivers allowing waste management systems to meet circular economy goals, targeting a zero waste approach aimed at eliminating waste and changing the…

Abstract

Chapter 5 deals with key drivers allowing waste management systems to meet circular economy goals, targeting a zero waste approach aimed at eliminating waste and changing the concept of waste into secondary materials. Case studies around Europe highlighted conditions and drivers of sustainable urban solid waste management systems; innovation, responsibility, stakeholder engagement, and knowledge sharing are factors enabling effective and viable urban waste management.

Details

Best Practices in Urban Solid Waste Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80043-889-7

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 January 2017

Emmanuel Yeboah-Assiamah, Kwame Asamoah and Thomas Agyekum Kyeremeh

The purpose of this paper is to examine empirical studies on public-private partnerships (PPPs) and solid waste management (SWM) in Ghana and India to synthesize the “crucial…

1410

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine empirical studies on public-private partnerships (PPPs) and solid waste management (SWM) in Ghana and India to synthesize the “crucial lessons” for urban managers and policy makers in developing countries.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic review of empirical studies was carried out, the search process comprised four categories of keywords combined differently across three main search engines in order to obtain a pool of more relevant literature on the study. Sorting for relevance was done at various levels; retrospective content analysis of relevant empirical studies on PPP and SWM in Ghana and India was subsequently carried out to draw lessons and policy suggestions.

Findings

PPPs have mainly been impressive in coverage of waste collection in the Ghanaian context, whilst in India, emphasis has been on injection of technology and effectiveness into SWM. It is also observed that in both cases the PPP processes have lacked adequate openness, transparency and sufficient stakeholder engagement. In the Ghana cases, mostly, urban authorities hardly pay attention to details in the partnership deed and also ignore monitoring of private partners. Poorly performed PPPs do occur when one of the partners relent on his role which could have a cascading effect on other actors.

Practical implications

Whilst PPP is a strong candidate to address the SWM challenges of urban centers in developing countries, this does not necessarily come about by joining the bandwagon. Merely entering into a partnership deed with private waste management companies without paying due attention to details of the contract will usher urban managers into a state of schizophrenia. The paper presents five key lessons to inform policy and practice.

Originality/value

The paper draws lessons from multiple cases of PPPs in Ghana and India by synchronizing lessons adaptable to city authorities and policy makers in developing countries.

Details

Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal, vol. 28 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7835

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 July 2020

Jaber Valizadeh

Waste production and related environmental problems have caused urban services management many problems in collecting, transporting and disposal of waste. Since collecting and…

Abstract

Purpose

Waste production and related environmental problems have caused urban services management many problems in collecting, transporting and disposal of waste. Since collecting and transporting waste are important parts of waste management budget, it is necessary to apply an appropriate method to reduce costs of collection. The aim of this study is to design a new model for urban waste collection vehicle routing problem with time windows and energy generating from waste.

Design/methodology/approach

A multiobjective model is presented with the objectives of minimizing cost of waste collection, reducing emissions from environmental pollutants and increasing income of recycles trade and energy recovery. Concerning the complexity of the model and its inability to solve large-scale problems, hyperactive genetic algorithms and multiple objective particle swarm optimization are applied.

Findings

The proposed model not only affects costs and income but also reduces the emissions of environmental pollutants. To solve the formulated model, multitarget approaches are applied on the processing site of Kermanshah city as a case study. The solutions of these algorithms and the exact method of partial constraints are compared and the outcomes are verified by numerical analysis by solving various examples in small, medium and large scales. The proposed model helps to collect urban wastes in the shortest possible time in addition to reducing the total cost, revenues from the sale of recycled materials and energy generation.

Research limitations/implications

Waste collection is related to VRP issue. Considering the environmental requirements in waste management, the concept of green supply chain is approached. This study provides a better understanding of urban waste management by examining various articles and combining economic and environmental dimensions. Waste management with a green approach and energy production from disposable waste involves many common stakeholders.

Practical implications

This study suggests that proper waste management can generate revenue from municipal waste. Moreover, it reduces cost of collecting and emission of environmental pollutants. These findings could motivate companies to waste management with a sustainable approach.

Originality/value

The proposed model boosts the current understanding of the waste management and energy generation of waste. The paper adds additional values by unveiling some key future research directions. This guidance may demonstrate possible existing and unexplored gaps so that researchers can direct future research to develop new processes.

Details

Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal, vol. 31 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7835

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 18 December 2023

Bernadette Ekua Bedua Afful, Michael Addaney, David Anaafo, Jonas Ayaribilla Akudugu, Felix Kwaku Borkor, Elvis Oppong Yeboah and Joshua Sampana

Poor municipal solid waste management is a major characteristic of urban development in Africa. In Ghana, local governments are mandated to ensure the collection, treatment and…

Abstract

Purpose

Poor municipal solid waste management is a major characteristic of urban development in Africa. In Ghana, local governments are mandated to ensure the collection, treatment and disposal of solid waste. However, this has been a herculean task for local governments in Ghana, owing to inadequate resources and weak technical capacities. This has prompted calls for, and actual involvement of the private sector through public-private partnerships (PPPs) in municipal solid waste management, particularly in the urban areas. This study aims to assess the roles, effectiveness and challenges of PPPs in urban waste management in the Sunyani municipality of Ghana.

Design/methodology/approach

Adopting a case study design, the study used a qualitative research approach to provide in-depth insights into PPPs in municipal solid waste management in the Sunyani municipality of Ghana. Therefore, key informant interviews and two focus group discussions were conducted.

Findings

The study revealed that some policies and actions of the local government (Assembly) do not positively facilitate the effective functioning of PPPs in municipal solid waste management. There is also lack of effective stakeholder consultation, collaboration and grassroot inclusion in the PPPs which affect the effective management of the increasing volumes of solid waste being generated within the municipality.

Practical implications

To achieve the objectives of the PPP arrangements, local authorities should initiate steps to effectively coordinate all the involved private companies. There must also be ways of involving the beneficiaries in the design and implementation of PPPs on waste management to allow for effective grassroots and participatory monitoring and evaluation.

Originality/value

The uniqueness of the case study being a mid-sized and secondary city in a developing country enhances the value of the findings and the application of recommendations in cities with similar characteristics and initiatives in improving PPPs in municipal waste management.

Details

Journal of Property, Planning and Environmental Law, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2514-9407

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 August 2010

Wahid Murad and Nik Hashim Nik Mustapha

This study examines whether or not the waste management practices of the poor households living in squatters and low‐cost flats in Kuala Lumpur are conducive to the environment…

1257

Abstract

This study examines whether or not the waste management practices of the poor households living in squatters and low‐cost flats in Kuala Lumpur are conducive to the environment. With the aim of accomplishing the above, the study empirically assesses knowledge, attitude and behaviour of the urban poor concerning their household solid waste management. With primary data collected from the level of living condition and waste management practices of the urban poor, the study employed a multiplicity of statistical techniques such as t‐tests of equality of means, one‐way analysis of variance, chi‐square ‘likelihood ratio’ tests, and descriptive statistics. The findings of the study provide evidence to the effect that poverty does not cause environmental degradation as the knowledge, attitude, and behaviour of the urban poor concerning solid waste management are found to have been conducive to the environment. The study suggests that the problems of poverty and environment need to be seen differently as the causal relationship between the two does actually depend on the level of socioeconomic profile and the type of environmental practices of a particular group of community

Details

World Journal of Science, Technology and Sustainable Development, vol. 7 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-5945

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 12000