Impact assessment is a fast becoming topical issue in solid waste management systems of developing countries.
This study focuses on the Life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) of modelled two solid wastes disposal methods;
landfilling and incineration in Oriire Local Government Area (LGA), Nigeria. The significance of this study is
to mitigate pollution arising from wastes use and their disposal. For the baseline data on the quantities of MSW
generated and disposed in the community, a field survey was conducted. Five (5) representative households
were selected and the mean wastes composition determined over a month. The process followed was that
provided for in the GaBi5 (Holistic Balancing) software for assessing life cycle of waste. Two (2) scenarios of
landfilling and incineration were formed, and two (2) processing methods of LCIA (the Tool for the Reduction
and Assessment of Chemical and other Environmental Impacts -TRACI of the United States Environmental
Protection Agency; and the methodology of the Centre for Environmental Studies -CML of the University of
Leiden) were employed. The measured impact indices include Global Warming Potential (GWP), Acidification
Potential (AP), Eutrophication Potential (EP) and the Ozone Depletion Potential (ODP). Findings showed that
about 80% components of the wastes are biodegradable while the rest were practically combustibles. The per
capita waste generation of the inhabitant was found to be 0.46 kg/day. The LCIA methods both revealed that
GWP, AP, EP and ODP effects of biodegradable wastes from landfilling exceed those from the incineration
processes. Ferro-metals had no serious positive contribution to the GWP and the least effect on GWP from
landfilling was noticed from glass/inert wastes. Compared with landfilling, incineration of wastes is found to be
the more environmentally safe disposal method for the study area. It is therefore recommended for use
notwithstanding its high construction, operational and maintenance costs.