Waste management is a pressing issue facing our world today. Poor waste management is mostly associated with detriments to the environment however, the mountain of rubbish in landfills has proven to harbor overnight disasters evidenced by landslides.  On Sunday, the world woke up to the news of a landslide at a rubbish dump in Uganda’s capital, Kampala that killed more than 23 people and caused millions of shillings in damage to property.

Similar incidents have taken place around sub-Saharan Africa due to poorly managed mountains of rubbish. In 2017, at least 115 people were killed in Ethiopia, crushed by landslides at a landfill in Addis Ababa. In Mozambique, at least 17 people died in landslides of a similar landfill disaster in Maputo in 2018.

By 2050, worldwide municipal solid waste generation is estimated to have increased by roughly 70 percent to 3.4 billion metric tons. Waste is an eye sore, smells unpleasant, damages people’s health, and lowers the morale of communities with now more disastrous outcomes like landslides occurring.

Uncontrolled burning of waste causes an extra 270,000 premature deaths every year around the world. Contact with waste can lead to an increase in cases of skin infections, dysentery, diarrhea, and cholera. Waste heaps are breeding grounds for vermin, flies, and mosquitoes, which are tied to increasing malaria cases.

Research shows that garbage decomposition across sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) dumpsites can cause billions of dollars in damage to the environment, or, if harnessed as clean energy, can generate an income of US$6.7 billion by 2060.

Research led by Nkweauseh Reginald Longfor highlights the economic damage resulting from inadequate waste management. Longfor and his colleagues analyzed the ongoing costs associated with poor waste disposal practices in 44 sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries from now until 2060. They compared these costs to the potential benefits of implementing better waste management strategies, such as sanitary landfills and anaerobic digestion.

Untapped Potential of Clean Energy in Sub-Saharan Africa

Anaerobic digestion is a natural process that occurs in a sealed container, where microorganisms, like bacteria, break down organic waste into biogas. Methane, which comprises 50–75% of biogas, depending on the type of waste and conditions, is its most energy-rich component. This process also produces digestate, a type of organic fertilizer valuable for agriculture.

For over two decades, cities in Europe have successfully utilized anaerobic digestion to convert organic waste found in municipal solid waste into electricity, cooking gas, and heat. Similarly, sanitary landfills offer another effective waste management solution.

These specialized landfills are equipped with wells and pipes to capture landfill gas, which is approximately 50% methane and 50% carbon dioxide, along with a few other compounds. This gas can then be used for electricity generation, heating, or even as vehicle fuel.

By capturing methane, a highly harmful greenhouse gas, and converting it into energy, its release into the atmosphere is decreased, lessening the effects of climate change. This, in turn, reduces the economic costs of problems such as habitat loss, property damage, disease spread, and soil and water contamination. Also, the long-term deadly effects of methane are lessened.

Secondly, methane contained in organic waste can be a renewable energy source, helping to decrease the reliance on fossil fuels. This would mean lower energy costs, more energy security, and less environmental and economic damage from fossil fuel use.

According to this latest research, by 2060, SSA countries could generate between 20 and 58 million MWh of electricity just from waste. This could provide each African with an extra 100–230 kWh of electricity. From 2035 to 2060, the top twenty countries could produce between 0.2 and 3.3 million MWh to 0.4 and 8.5 million MWh of electricity from waste.

Sanitary landfills are also designed to prevent pollutants from leaking into the air, soil, or groundwater. However, their effectiveness depends on proper location, construction, maintenance, and operation.