A review of factors associated with indiscriminate dumping of waste in eleven African countries

Rethinking sustainability: a review of Liberia’s municipal solid waste management systems, status, and challenges

“…This could be explained by the variation of solid waste production per capita in rural areas compared to that of urban areas and/or residents' attitudes towards environmental sanitation. Additionally, the waste composition, waste density, and generation rates of solid waste in rural communities are of lesser quantity than in urban areas, [11,32]. Further research is needed to fully understand the factors influencing waste generation in urban and rural areas of the country.…”

“…Many European countries, for example, have adopted "zero waste Europe'' (ZW)-a plan that emphasizes converting waste to resources, encouraging treatment plants that include facilities for sorting recyclables, adopting WtE treatment processes, [8] the incorporation of incineration and composting plants, etc. [11]. However, most developing countries including Liberia are falling behind because of the lack of resources, lack of technical and technological skills, weak legislation, etc.…”

“…While progress has been made to manage waste, sustainable solid waste management in the country still remains a challenge. Unsustainable solid waste management poses high risks to public health in many least developed countries in Africa [10,11] due to high population growth and increasing waste generation patterns. The effects of unsustainable solid waste management practices include land degradation, breeding sites for mosquitoes and other vectors, diseases, impact on land valuation, and illnesses [12].…”

“…Additionally, most developed countries have prioritized waste management activities followed by the complete adoption of the 4Rs; 'reduction, reclaiming, recycle and reusing or recovery' of scrap. Similarly, the adoption of the waste-to-energy (WtE) approach has also been implemented by developed and some developing countries including China, South Africa, Australia, and The Netherlands [11]. Waste-to-energy involves the cycle of treatment that produces energy in the form of power, the production of clean, renewable energy, and resource recovery from the sustainable management of MSW [17,18].…”

“…Liberia, a signatory to major environmental conventions, is still lacking because of the gap between the ratification of these conventions and implementation. Also, the lack of knowledge regarding the implementation of integrated programs; inadequately skilled individuals; the lack of financial, technical, strategic and technological resources; inconsistent guidelines regarding waste management; lack of institutionalizing the informal reprocessing industry; minimal research and development activities; the absence of engineered sanitary landfills; the absence of opportunities for recycling and the lack of developed infrastructure [11,24,25] have contributed to the increasing trend of indiscriminate dumping of waste in the country. Moreover, because of the lack of inadequate research and developmental activities in Liberia, there are a limited number of articles available regarding municipal solid waste disposal.…”