Factors Associated with Composting of Solid Waste at Household Level in Masaka Municipality, Central Uganda

Abstract

The domestic solid waste stream composition of urban settings in many developing countries including Uganda is largely biodegradable in nature, and thus, composting provides the most suitable solid waste management option for these wastes. However, there is limited information about waste composting at the household level and associated determinants in Uganda. A cross-sectional study was employed to collect quantitative data from 368 residents of Masaka municipality, Central Uganda. A semistructured interviewer administered questionnaire was used which assessed knowledge, perceptions, and practices of composting. Data were analysed using STATA 13.0, and binary logistic regression was used to determine the factors that influence composting at the household level. Of the 368 participants, 11.4% were engaged in composting. Factors associated with household level composting were age of 46 years and above (aOR = 2.69, 95% CI = (1.06–6.80)), possession of a garden (aOR = 28.88, 95% CI = (3.85–216.72)), engagement in waste segregation (aOR = 5.56, 95% CI = (2.25–13.86)), and periurban residence (aOR = 3.81, 95% CI = (1.78–8.16)). The practice of composting at the household level was low. This therefore highlights the need for urban authorities to develop initiatives for promoting composting at the household level while considering the identified predictors associated with composting.

Status of Household Solid Waste Management and Associated Factors in a Slum Community in Kampala, Uganda

“…is is understandable as the slum community is largely a residential area, as such biodegradable waste from the kitchen is often generated. Our findings are similar to those of studies carried out in other parts of Uganda [10,11,24,25]. However, it is clear from our findings that few households engaged in segregation of biodegradable waste from other types.…”

“…Projects implemented in slum communities sensitize households on solid waste management especially separation at the point of practice [27,28], but many households may not afford multiple receptacles required to segregate waste [29]. Unlike our research, a related study found that a relatively high number of households were willing to engage in waste segregation [10] and in another, half of the respondents segregated their waste [11]. Solid waste segregation allows further processing and value extraction through recycling and composting [30].…”

“…Solid waste segregation allows further processing and value extraction through recycling and composting [30]. However, in urban areas most residents do not engage in such processing including compositing attributed partly to absence of a garden [11]. It is important that solid waste management initiatives in slums promote separation of waste at household level so as to facilitate proper solid waste management.…”

“…However, slum dwellers forfeit this service because of unaffordability, inaccessibility to the waste collection vehicles, disappointments from the solid waste collection companies, and ignorance of importance solid waste management services [10]. Previous studies have not employed observations to ascertain the actual status of solid waste management [10,11], which this study employed. As such, the findings on solid waste management in this study are directly observed.…”

Suitability of Kibuye Market Organic Waste for Composting as a Means of Solid Waste Management for Kisumu City

“…However, a number of challenges still stand in the way of this realization. Notable among these obstacles are that organic wastes are not separated at source and urban residences are too small to manage them within their compounds as also observed in Uganda [7]. Furthermore, the City does not have composting spaces in its solid waste management dumpsite at Kachok.…”