Environmental and health impact of solid waste disposal in developing cities: a case study of granville brook dumpsite, Freetown, Sierra Leone

Type Journal Article - Journal of Environmental Protection
Title Environmental and health impact of solid waste disposal in developing cities: a case study of granville brook dumpsite, Freetown, Sierra Leone
Author(s)
Volume 4
Issue 07
Publication (Day/Month/Year) 2013
Page numbers 665-670
URL http://www.nswaienvis.nic.in/pdf_HE/he_aug15/Environmental and Health Impact of Solid Waste Disposal​in Developing Cities A Case Study of Granville Brook Dumpsite, Freetown, Sierra Leone.pdf
Abstract
Indiscriminate disposal of solid waste in dumpsites located within urban areas has proved to be a problem to nearby
residents in most developing cities of the world, Freetown is no exception. Open dumps have environmental safeguards;
they can pose major public health threats and environmental effects in urban cities. Therefore, this paper presents the
findings of a research carried out in Freetown municipal area in Sierra Leone to determine the environmental and health
impacts of solid waste disposal at Granville Brook dumpsite on the surrounding human settlements. Data were collected
from three hundred and ninety eight nearby dumpsite household residents ( three far away household residents (>fifty metres) through the use of structured self-administered questionnaires. Interviews
and personal observations were also used to collect some of the data. Descriptive statistics involving tables,
graphs and figures were used to present and analyze the data. Results show that both nearby residents and far away
residents suffered from related diseases such as malaria, chest pains, diarrhea and cholera, due to the location of the
dumpsite closer to their settlements. As a result, this study highlights the need for the Freetown City Council to properly
manage and relocate the dumpsite to a safe distance from all human settlements, and provide resettlement and environmental
education programmes for all persons living less than fifty metres away from the dumpsite as interim measures.

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