An Assessment of Solid Waste and Landfilis in Muscat Area, Oman

Abstract

The paper presents the results of a 1998 study of the solid waste generation within the greater Muscat City area. The recent data were compared with the available data from the last 10 years to assess the solid waste problems within the area. Five operating landfills were used as the data collection points. It appeared that through the last decade, the solid waste generation rate has increased sharply. However, the rate of waste production stabilized to 750 – 800 ton/day during the last three years of the 1990s. The rate amounts to 1.5 kg/person/day. Overall municipal waste volume decreased through the years while the amounts generated from private sources such as industries and commercial centers increased during the same period. This is due to the fact that the Sultanate of Oman is developing very fast with increasing industrial, commercial and residential activities. About 80 % of the solid wastes is organic materials. This amount is high when compared to figures found in western countries. The data indicate that about 40 percent of the solid wastes are composed of recoverable materials. The concerned authorities should encourage the growth of industries to be involved in recycling business. Such activities will reduce the solid waste discharge in landfills and increase nearly 1.6 folds the expected life of existing landfills. A survey of the operating landfills indicate that the operational efficiency may be substantially improved by incorporating measures that deal with problems of gas production and leachate movements. The paper includes a detailed discussion of the problem and makes recommendations for possible future actions.

Composition of Solid Waste in Al Jabal Al Akhdar, a Mountain Region Undergoing Rapid Urbanization in Northern Oman

“…Paper and cardboard waste contribute 17.9% of the total waste collected by the municipality in Al Jabal Al Akhdar. This was lower than that (28.8%) reported by Palanivel and Sulaiman [18] and close to the 16.3 % recorded by El Zawahry et al [21]. The 21.4% reported by the operator of Al Multaqa Landfill was not significantly different from that reported for Al Jabal Al Akhdar (p>0.05).…”

“…The mean percentage of plastic waste (26.7%) was higher than that (8.5% and 17.2%) reported by El Zawahry et al [21] and Palanivel and Sulaiman [18] respectively in Muscat. However, it is not significantly different from the percentage (24.3%) reported by the operator of Al Multaqa Landfill (p>0.05).…”

“…Other researchers indicated that the samples of solid waste should range between 50-136 kg [20]. According to another study conducted in different districts of Muscat Governorate, Oman in 1998 [21], the food wastes accounted for 38.8% based on a total of 10 samples of 800 -850 kg taken from five dumpsites. This estimate also may not be very accurate as there were relatively low numbers of samples.…”