THE UNSYNCHRONIZED ONITSHA, NIGERIA’S MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT AND THE CONSEQUENCES IN THE AREA’S WATER SUPPLY: THE CASE OF WATER CONTAMINATION IN ONITSHA, NIGERIA

Abstract

The increasing per capita income and changing patterns of consumption have resulted in materials previously regarded as useful now being discarded in virtually all countries of the world. The production of waste in Nigerian is increasing however, the system of handling it is still primitive, detrimental to the health of the people and Onitsha, Nigeria is among the cities with the worst situations. In Onitsha, Nigeria, gutters are clogged; water gushing out on the streets, community ponds, rivers and open spaces are littered with garbage, contaminating their drinking water. This paper will identify and document a noticeable worsening phenomenon or rather, the deterioration in Onitsha city waste management practices and the consequences in the city’s culinary water supply. The authors were careful with the analytical instrument and tools used. The disciplinary area of focus is the contamination of water in Onitsha area as a result; the instrument of more than one research strategy; quantitative and qualitative research methods and their tactics were used. Solid waste management takes place on the public streets, back yard ponds, rivers and neighborhood open spaces and affecting the health of Onitsha people and medical research and doctors advised that hepatitis and some other harmful diseases are contracted through bad water. The people depend on mechanically produced water and boreholes for their water supply without minding the quality of the water. The government should establish a better standard for regulating and managing both their waste and water supply.