Modification of the environment and increase in population are the main causes of the many processes of deterioration which have altered the ecosystem of our planet, including the generation of waste. There is a growing problem of solid waste management with the development of industry and the expansion of cities of many countries in the world. Wilson (2006) describes waste as anything which is no longer useful and needs to be got rid of. Waste is material discarded, used up or left over in the course of industrial, commercial, domestic or other activities. Dumping of waste and extensive littering has become a serious environmental problems in Botswana in recent years (Gould, 1995). It is apparent that districts are facing major problems with managing domestic and industrial solid waste. A report by Central Statistics Office (CSO, 1998) office has indicated that in Botswana, 10 000 tons of waste are generated every day, as such this has exerted tremendous pressure on the country’s waste management systems. Each year the population of University of Botswana increases due to the enrollment of new students, as a result of this the waste in the University also increase .The research proposal being conducted is to find out what the university is doing about the issues of waste management.
There are different practices that could be done to help in reducing waste. Those practices are recycling ,law formation to reduce waste production , coming up with programmes that will teach the public about waste management . In developing countries such as Botswana waste management practices are not very effective because the public has been taught about waste management but they are not putting what they have been taught into practice as they illegally dump waste anywhere they like , laws that has been created to reduce waste are not been put into practice by the relevant authorities . The reasons why this practices are not effective is because those who should make sure that waste is well managed do not do so .The reason for the this proposal is to make those in power of waste management aware that they are not doing their work well as they should enforce those laws and make sure who ever does not practice waste management is highly punished .
Botswana’s Waste Management Act 1998 “the Act makes provision for the management and control of waste, establishes the Department of Sanitation and Waste Management and provides for the implementation of provisions of the Basel Convention on the Control of Trans boundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal. The Act also provides for waste recycling plans and defines duties of local authorities in relation with the collection and disposal of waste.” University of Botswana being one the largest education institutions in Botswana which by 1982 became university of Botswana coming from the then University of Bechuanaland, Basutoland and Swaziland, it hold approximately 12800 undergraduate students and numerous stuff, Due to its large population waste is generated which is difficult to manage, the waste is generated from food stuff packages, waste from the cafeteria, poor drainage systems, domestic waste and also waste from the surrounding flora. The waste proves to be difficult to manage
In the past couple of years they have been impact of poor waste management on the environment of University of Botswana which may lead to poor sanitation hence causes diseases to the lives of students, staff and all those living around campus. Waste management is a situation exasperated by haphazard dumping by individuals and industries and uncollected domestic waste, which lead to SW entering waterways through various channels such as storm-water drains and waste finding its way into undesignated areas, in particular streams and highways, pathways, fields and public spaces (Kwailane, 2016).According to (Maburutshe,2009) for better off, waste management bill platform could change individuals behavior for improper waste disposal also ever-changing of waste companies every academic years would enable a good healthy environment.
Waste management is a pressing issue worldwide. One would agree that poor waste management in its own contributes to the current environmental issues such as surface water contamination, waste that ends up in open source of surface water contaminates its making it unsafe for use, further adding on to the need for clean drinkable water, not only waste pollute water It also pollute the soil in which plant use in turn making the plants unsafe for use. University of Botswana as Botswana’s largest prestigious university should take charge in waste management to help mitigate the issues of waste. The proposal will also bring to little the need for better waste management if not an improved waste management practice, and consideration for other alternatives of handling waste such as recycling in this way the environment will benefit as well as its people’s health.
Waste management is more than just collecting waste. It is the collection, transportation, and processing, recycling, disposal and monitoring of waste materials, the environment has to be taken into account. Information on waste generation is important to determine the most suitable waste disposal options. Improper waste disposal may cause pollution. The main purpose in implementing best practice for solid waste management is to prevent pollution, which is a threat to human and other living organism (Vijayakumar, 2012). It may also damage the ecosystem and disrupt the natural cycle and climate on earth. There are many disposal options available to suit the nature of waste.
Waste management has become a global issue and is of a major concern, especially in developing countries, due to various environmental problems, such as pollution of air, soil and water and generation of greenhouse gases (Acker, 2012). Relevant authorities generally fail in providing suitable waste management strategies due to insufficient funds and ineffective legislation that govern the use of those strategies. The primary goal of solid waste management is to reduce and eliminate the negative impacts of waste materials on human health and environment to support sustainable development and quality of life (Zhaohui, 2010)
Waste management has a serious concern in environmental problems. This is often notably applies to urban areas where population is growing and quantity of waste generated is increasing drastically, waste generation increase proportionately to population growth and financial gain thus making the requirement for an efficient management strategy (Marshall & Farahbakhsh, 2013). Urbanization and industrialization leads to new lifestyle and behaviour which also affects waste management strategies. The management of waste become complex and the facilities provided cannot manage with the increasing demand and needs of the ever growing population, therefore the best approach needs to be implemented immediately while considering environmental, social and economic sustainability (Siddiqui, 2015). The generation of waste varies considerably between countries and various institutions based on the culture, public awareness and management, institutions such as the University of Botswana .Universities educate most of the people who develop and manage society’s institutions (Armijo de Vega, 2003). Universities influence an indirect responsibility in ensuring that sustainable plans and policies are embedded in the society. Through their knowledge, they have the capacity to increase awareness, knowledge, technology and tools necessary to promote and sustain best practices within and around the community in which they are located.
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Sources of waste include industries, markets, schools, churches, hospitals and other communities where human beings reside or gather for a period of time. Waste can be classified based on material, such as plastic, paper, glass, metal, and organic waste. Classification may also be based on hazard potential, including radioactive, flammable, infectious, toxic, or non-toxic and waste may also be characterized by its origin such as industrial, domestic, commercial, and institutional or construction and demolition. Regardless of the origin, content or hazard potential, solid waste must be managed thoroughly to ensure environmental best practices as solid waste management is a critical part of environmental hygiene, it needs to be integrated into environmental planning.
Inadequate waste management and the uncontrolled disposal of wastes are identified as core problems in the deterioration of environmental quality in Botswana (Kgathi & Bolaane, 2001).Waste collection facilities are inadequate and often limited to urban income residential neighbourhoods neglecting the rural settlements. Waste collection and transportation is also a concern as it is limited by inadequate equipment, personnel which lacks proper training on waste handling and financial resources are just some of the problems facing all local authorities. It is important to launch a strong public awareness campaign on the impact of poor waste disposal practices and how different types of wastes affect human health so as to increase community participation and positive attitude towards tackling waste management (Kgosiesele, 2010).
The sampling frame consisted of the total population of students and staff of the University of Botswana. This includes a student population of approximately 15,484 and staff population of around 2,658. The study used a multi-stage random sampling design to select participants for the research. This is a form of sampling that involves taking of samples in stages using smaller in a descending manner sampling units at each stage. To utilise the multi-stage random sampling the researcher would randomly select 10 students from each faculty on the school campus, a total number of 80 students will be picked from all faculties. The same procedure will also be used to sample from stuff members to get a total of 90 participants. Then a stratified random sampling procedure will be followed to pick a representative number of students and stuff who will participate in the study.
Questionnaires will be administered on the identified sample group from the University of Botswana main campus. The questionnaires will mostly be focused on the type of waste that students and stuff mostly see prominent of the school grounds, to find out to what extent to which the waste around the school affect their studies and daily activities. The questionnaires will also be focusing on asking which areas they find to be the heath or source of most waste generated in the school grounds. The questionnaires will also ask the University of Botswana governing of waste management which is mostly targeted towards the staff members, seeking information on legal and policy frameworks, awareness waste management practices and their challenges.
Data will be also be obtained through observations on the school grounds, which will look into the general state of the University of Botswana in terms of waste management, types of waste generated, availability of waste disposal facilities such as waste bins and their accessibility, also the frequency of waste collection by the cleaners in the school.
Secondary data from the study will be obtained from published sources such as journals and books, including population census statistics from the Botswana Central Statistics Office and the University Annual Reports. Internet sources were also used to obtain data.
The study will mostly use descriptive analysis, it is a tool used to show or summarize data in a meaningful way. Descriptive data analysis is important as it screen data for reliability and consistency. It will be used to study are frequency of waste collection and disposal around the school grounds and distributions and percentages of waste produced on the school grounds, with regards to data presentation, tables, charts and graphs will be used to describe the data collected.
The researchers expect to face several challenges in the study, the first one is of lack of funds to conduct the study thoroughly, and financial resources to conduct the research are low. Another problem to meet is lack of data especially in terms of quantifying the amount of waste produced by the University of Botswana from the school waste management authorities. Data attainment may also become a problem as there is no promise that the sampled study group will willingly participate in the study, some may be reluctant or not be fully corporative in disclosing information that has implications of the validity of the results that will be obtained from the study.
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