By Andinet Kebede (PhD)

April 2024
• SWM can be thought of as a chain of linked stages.
 Stage 1: generation by individual HHs, institutions & others.
 Stage 2: where ‘3 Rs’ practiced by separating waste at source.
 Stage 3: storage, collection, transfer & transport.
 Stage 4: Waste treatment & disposal.
• Regulations for WM in Ethiopia (National SWM Proclamation):
 Overall aim to ‘… prevent possible adverse impacts while creating
economically & socially beneficial assets out of SW’ (FDRE, 2007)
 Among its clauses, it makes urban administrations responsible for
producing & implementing SWM plans.

• Admins required to
 install waste bins in streets & public places &
 to collect waste from these bins often to prevent them overflowing.

• In Ethiopia & many other developing countries, collection - most

expensive stage (~50–70% of the total budget).
 important that effective collection system is in place.
• Ethiopia has a long way to go to achieve adequate waste collection
systems in all its towns & cities.
Example
• In AA, only 65% of the city’s SW collected in 2003; increased to 80%
in 2010. Still considerable progress to make.

• In other towns, the situation is worse.

 In Dessie, 48% of residents practice ‘open dumping’ (roadside, on
bandoned land, in open sewers/river banks, or around their yard).
 In Bahir Dar, collection rate was estimated in 2010 at 67%.
 In Mekelle, until recent, only a third of total waste generated
collected by municipality.
• A good waste collection system can:
 reduce flies, rodents & other scavenging animals (spread diseases)
 keep drains clear avoiding flood & contamination of watercourses
 make the area more pleasant
 encourage people to look after their area
 encourage businesses to stay in the area or others to move there
 help to build healthier society where people can earn more money
& children can gain more from their schooling
• Collection system must be designed & operated in integrated way.
i.e. all links in the chain considered when any part of the sy.
designed, so that all components compatible.
• For example,
 Method of loading must suit containers used to store the waste.
 If waste recycled, collection stage designed so that there is min.
degree of contamination of recyclable material.
 If waste deposited at landfill, transporting trucks must be suitable
for driving on landfill.
• Thus, 1st general objective & reqr’ts set; then different components
selected/designed, considering how a stage affected by preceding one
& will influence the following stages.
• Collection begins with generator putting waste in a container.
• Choice of container depends on factors such as wealth of HH,
amount of waste, collection system (from out-side house or after HH
empty it into communal container).

• Simplest & cheapest storage containers for HHs - old lidded food
containers (e.g. sacks). Easy for HH to empty them to communal bin.

• At other extreme - wheeled bins (can hold up to 240 L).

 Emptied into vehicle fitted with lifting equipment.
 Sy. using it needs well-maintained wide road within
10 m or so of each property served.
• Communal bins- larger than domestic containers & more robust.
• Often need to be emptied by special vehicle fitted with lifting equip.

Waste skip
(3 to 15 m3)

• Effective WM - commitment from local people & kebele authorities.

 People should use communal containers correctly & avoid littering.
 Admin (or its contractors) should empty containers at regular, pre-
determined times (e.g., every Tuesday morning) & keep containers
& immediate area clean.
• Communal waste skip awaiting collection to be emptied.
• Regular emptying - essential to avoid situation shown here.
Container Locations (or points of collection)
• At which waste passes from control of generator to control of
collection agency.
• Interface b/n service recipient & service provider.
 Generator - responsible for taking waste to point of collection.
 Collection agency - concerned about costs of collection, difficulties
in access & loading & problems occurring when generators fail.

• Cost of collection from community storage < from each dwelling, if

significant quantities of waste not scattered on streets & containers
do not need to be replaced frequently.
• 3 locations where waste can be transferred to collection agency:
 In street at short distance from generator’s property, „
 in street at property boundary, &
 inside property.

1) In the street
a) Community, communal or street containers (self-delivery)
• HHs take their wastes to predetermined locations where there is
some form of community storage facility.
• Refuse collection vehicles visit the sites, often once daily or every
other day, to remove accumulated waste.
• Principal adv.:
 Reduces considerably no of sources from which waste collected.
 Economy that results from reduced no of collection points could be
false if containers too widely spaced & there is poor public co-
operation resulting in wastes being thrown on ground to avoid
having to bring them to container.
 If so, task of collection transferred to street sweeping service (more
expensive).

• Spacing of storage facilities depends on extent to which community

is willing to co-operate in proper use.
• Typically, containers spaced so that distance b/n any two 200 m.
b) Block collection system
• Used in many countries.
• Collection vehicle travels a fixed route at prescribed intervals, usually
every 2-3 days & stops at selected locations where bell sounded or
music played as it drives along to notify HHs of its arrival.
• Upon hearing signal, HHs take their refuse to trucks &
 hand over to crew who empty containers & pass them back to HHs.
 Sometime, residents load waste into vehicle themselves.

• No containers left in public places.

• Timing - residents or servants in properties to bring out their waste,
otherwise waste will be left out in street.
2) At the property boundary – kerbside collection
• Collection crew collects waste in bins, bags & other containers, left
at roadside.
• In some places, waste is just left in pile, requiring more effort from
collection service.
• Generators informed ahead about days on which collection happens
so that they can put their waste in time.
• Requires regular & well-organized collection.

• Delays in collection result in waste being left out for more time,
 increasing chances of scattered by pickers & animals
 increased risks that containers stolen or damaged
• HHs with no one at home when collectors come can still put their
containers out before they leave home.
• Most commonly used in high-income areas of industrialized country,
having replaced back door collection (labour costs high).

• Vehicle & labour productivity can be enhanced using standardized

containers & providing less frequent collection service.

• Climatic conditions generally dictate that waste in developing

countries should not be stored for periods in excess of 4 days.
• In some industrialised countries residents required to segregate their
wastes & put the different wastes out for collection at different times
and/or in different containers.

• It is seldom practical in developing countries where segregated items

from high-income areas may be collected by private or informal
sectors on commercial basis.
3) Inside the property
a) Back door or door to door collection
• Requires residents to do no more than to store their waste in their
yards outside their back doors.
• Collection crew enters each property, takes out container, empties
into collection vehicle & returns container.
• Lack of HH involvement results in increased labour costs & frequent
delays of waiting for gates opening.
• Where labour costs high, twice as expensive as kerbside collection.
• Becoming less common in industrialised countries & rarely practiced
in developing countries.
b) Collection from apartment buildings
• Provide storage outside or at ground floor, from which waste can be
collected by the collection service.
• Wastes brought to containers by residents, by caretaker of bld’g or
by means of vertical refuse chutes that have openings on each floor.

• Chutes:
• problematic in many situations, becoming blocked & odorous, or
encouraging breeding of cockroaches.
• Smooth interior, use in disciplined way & cleaning regularly req’d.
Frequency
• Frequency of collection - basic parameter of any collection sy.
• Some of factors affecting freq. - public expectations, fly breeding &
decomposition.
 Biodegradable – daily collection (in hot climate) or in alternate days.
 Segregated non-organic, recyclable or inert collected less frequently
(e.g. every 2 weeks).
 Leaving waste in steel containers for long may result in faster
corrosion b/s decomposition of organic materials produces acids.

• Frequency must be acceptable to residents, otherwise waste may be

dumped in the streets.
Time of the day
• Collection from urban areas normally done during hours of daylight.

• Many instances of collection at night.

 In large, congested cities at least some of collection operations may
be carried out at night to avoid traffic congestion.
 Waste collection vehicles themselves cause congestion, particularly
if they must stop in narrow streets.
 Regulations preventing truck from using city streets during business
hours, to reduce congestion.
• In some small cities & towns waste collected night, perhaps due to:
 Traffic congestion & national policy.
 „Shopkeepers & residents used to putting waste out for collection in
evening, after close of business & after last meal prepared.
 „Daytime temp. very high & sun is very strong for collection crews.
 „Waste collection considered unpleasant occupation.

• Disadvantages of night collection:

 Collection vehicles can be noisy, esp. compactor trucks.
 Loading waste & sweeping streets difficult & even dangerous.
 May require operation of landfills at night.
 Risks of accidents higher at night; supervision less effective.
Slum neighborhood in Mumbai, India
Steep slope - access for collection difficult
Possible to access by vehicles, but traffic congestion problem
• Given variety of settlement patterns & situations, we need to adopt to
local conditions for collection & transport of waste from the whole city.
• In cities with such variety of neighborhoods, often necessary to split
collection into 2 stages.
• Primary collection
 from point where it is placed by generator (on-site storage).
 provides service in the neighborhood with smaller, simpler &
more appropriate vehicles.

• Depending on collection vehicle & distance to treatment/disposal

site.

• Vehicles can be human-powered, animal-powered or even motorized

• Collected waste then disposed at transfer or collection point where
 stored in larger hauled container (i.e. removed & replaced with
empty container).
 Stationary system that is emptied & left at the same spot.

• Primary collection can be done in many ways.

 Lower-tech options (suitable for collecting waste from HHs &
transporting it to TS or local disposal site) - next slide.
 All have benefit of serving narrow streets in crowded areas.
 Wheelbarrow
- Only suitable to take from HHs to communal collection point.
- Good for narrow, but well-maintained street surface.

Hand-cart
- Additional wheels - more stable (esp. on poor road).
- Easier for longer distances; carry larger volume (1–2 m3).
- Suitable for door-to-door collections in crowded areas.
Cycle cart
- Collect up to 3 m3 & transport waste to communal bin or TS.
- Cart has drop-down sides - loading & unloading easier.
- Needs reasonable road surface & not suitable for steep hills.
Donkey cart
- Similar uses to cycle cart
- has drop-down end
- reasonable road surfaces & not suitable for steep gradients.

Tractor
- much higher costs than the above options.
- Can transport up to 4 m3 of waste for up to
20 km to disposal sites or TSs.
• Waste from primary collections is transported with large vehicle to
recycling, treatment or final disposal facility.
• Next slide shows some options for 2dary waste collection vehicles;
some of these also used for primary collections in certain situations.

• Of course, where space & road infrastructure allows, direct collection

service with larger vehicles possible.
 Truck fitted with bin lifter
- Robust vehicle, can travel on rough roads.
- Suitable for transferring or collecting communal bins
from residential & commercial areas.
.

- Dump trucks w/out bin lifters not recommended.

(need manual loading)

Enclosed light truck

- Tipper box fitted to conventional vehicle chassis.
- Useful for emptying street-side & communal bins.
- Can serve narrower street than most motorized vehicles.
- Needs better roads than truck-based vehicles.

Flatbed crane truck

- Useful for collecting skips from transfer stations, markets
& industrial areas.
- Fitted with its own crane for loading & unloading.

Compactor
- Most expensive collection/transfer vehicle (~$250,000).
- Compaction equip. not suitable for residential (high ).
- Only suitable for collecting low-density waste in large
quantities where road conditions good.
- Of little use outside major cities.
• Most of primary collection vehicles can only really transport waste
short distance – a few kms at most.
• Most of 2ndary collection vehicles, too large to collect waste from
crowded urban areas &/or too expensive for most of Ethiopia.
• So unless disposal site < ~3 km from centre, waste taken off by
primary collection vehicle & loaded onto 2ndary collection vehicles.
This is done at transfer station.

• Waste stored at TS for short time - recyclable material extracted .

• TSs located conveniently close to communities, but not too close to
people’s homes or factories, schools, hospitals, etc.
• Should have access to major roads leading to treatment or disposal.
• Transfer stations have many advantages:
 Fewer but larger-capacity vehicles - reduce traffic congestion &
pollution.

 If primary collection vehicles drive longer distances to disposal site

they are more likely to be tempted to save time by illegal dumping
waste at side of road. TSs prevent this.

 In areas of low popn density, cheaper to have TS that incorporates

short-term storage of waste. Small carts deposit waste here daily &
large vehicle transport stored waste to disposal site every few days.

 Consolidating waste into fewer vehicles reduces vehicle wear, need

for maintenance & fuel consumption.
 Waste can be screened so that recyclable items or inappropriate
waste (like tyres & vehicle batteries; not to landfill) taken out.

 TSs reduce traffic at disposal facility. Since fewer vehicles go there,

traffic congestion avoided, cost of operation minimized & public
safety improved.
Types of transfer station
• Simplest TSs consist of area of hardstanding where skips situated.
• In simple TS contents of primary collection carts transferred to
containers manually.

Simple transfer station

 Mechanically loaded transfer station

• In more complex TSs, collection carts tip their waste onto concrete
floor & mechanical loading shovel used to transfer it to skips.
• Allows use of larger containers; more economical where distances to
waste disposal site greater.
• Measures taken to protect health & safety of workers & public:
 Site enclosed with walls - only authorised people can access where
machinery operated, keeps out scavenging animals & reduces wind
-blown littering.
 Site has roof - rain kept out & waste can’t pollute surface runoff.
 Loading using machine reduces human contact with waste.
Health & environmental impacts of TSs
• TSs can be environmentally damaging.
• In contrast, high-quality site with good fencing, hardstanding, lighting &
office/amenity building has little environmental impact.
• All waste TSs smell to some extent, but even this can be minimised by
ensuring waste not stored for long periods.

Badly equipped & poorly managed TS Well-designed TS

 Project 1

• In urban location, likely to be many TSs distributed around the town.

• Waste collected from all stations as well as directly from businesses,
institutions & some HHs.

• Mostly, only a site for final treatment & disposal, to which waste
must be transported & usually situated at outskirt.

• Thus, reasonable to plan routes for waste collection vehicles to make

best use of resources available.

• This keeps costs down & gives people best-possible service.

• Route planning is complex operation, but basic process consists of 3
stages:
 Identifying pickup points & likely amounts of waste to be
collected from each point.
 Grouping pickup points to form ‘collection rounds’ that can be
served by a single collection vehicle.
 Planning route of each collection round taking account of
 distance travelled,
 traffic levels &
 safety to public & waste collectors.
Follow procedure given in section 11-10 (starting on page 607) of the
following book and do the project. The book is available in the main library.
• A cause to poor SW collection & treatment/disposal program - weak
cost recovery system.
i.e., no effective mechanism for collecting payments to cover costs
of waste collection system.

• If waste collection & disposal service users don’t pay for service,
either directly or via kebele local authority, then no funds available
to pay wages, maintain equip. or invest in new equip. & facilities.

• This leads to decline in service offered; in turn leads to reduced

income for service providers, and so on.
• Private sector organizations can be better equipped than gov’t org.
to collect payments & manage finances.
• If they become involved to provide WM services, spiral of declining
services can be reversed.

• Arrangement, where public & private sector work together, is known

as public–private partnership (PPP) or private sector participation
(PSP).
 E.g. private sector company may be paid to collect a kebele’s waste
& to collect payments from individual businesses & residents.
• If many companies compete for same contract- lower cost to kebele.
Ex. of waste mng’t PPP schemes (Addis Ababa)
• Private sector operators be eligible to permits of waste collection,
transport & treatment after SWM Proclamation published (2007).
• By April 2011, 524 firms in AA permitted to collect SWs.
• Over the 4 years, proportion of the city’s waste collected had risen
from 60 - 80%, providing waste collection services to extra 600,000
people.
• Many of these private sector operators are ‘micro-enterprises’.
• Under these PPP schemes, planning & admin is responsibility of
kebele authorities, who remain owners of the service.
• Micro-enterprises are responsible for operating schemes,
 collect waste from individual HHs,
 taking fee from each HH served &
 receiving fee from kebele based on amount of waste deposited at
central collection points/TSs.

• This helped to raise proportion of waste collected.

• But scheme was only semi-regulated, resulting in several collectors

working in the same (well-off) areas & no collector working in areas
where residents could not afford to pay collection fees.
Terminology of micro- and small enterprises (MSE or SME)
• Various terms depending on No of employees & financial status of
the firm.
• Precise definitions can vary, but a frequently used classification:
 micro-enterprises: fewer than 10 employees
 small enterprises: 10 to 50 employees
 medium-sized enterprises: 50 to 250 employees.

• MSEs are micro- and small enterprises comprising businesses with

fewer than 50 employees.
Bahir Dar
• (2008) local gov’t contracted a newly formed private company to
collect, transport & dispose of the city’s waste.
• Waste collected from outside houses & businesses by 270 collectors
which use hand-carts to take waste to network of ~100 collection
points.
• At collection points, collectors load waste onto open trucks; driven
to open dumpsite 7 km outside the city.
• Money to set up the scheme provided by gov’t (56%), UN (34%) &
the company (10%), & only income stream - from fees paid by HHs
for collections.
• Scheme was successful - proportion of waste collected rose 50-67%.
• But, fee income was only half level expected, so the firm had to use
grants provided for capital equip. (vehicles, etc.) to pay staff wages.
 i.e. scheme could not continue in long term.

• Municipality subsequently organized 4 additional MSEs to extend

the system & improve waste collection rates across the city.
• SWM systems are growing in many Ethiopian towns, but there is still
considerable scope for improvement.
• The several ways of increasing efficiency:
 raising awareness of public health implications of poor WM
 improving planning decisions & enforcement of regulations
 increasing no of TSs at accessible sites
 increasing no of trucks available for transportation
 promoting compost production from organic waste
 promoting separation of waste at source (HH level)
 collaboration & participation of private sector & communities
• To make significant & sustainable progress in SWM, integrated
approach that used a combination of these methods.
• No blue print solution which is feasible for a city.
 Look at each area in the city specifically, to provide regular &
reliable service for all.
 ‘What kind of service & collection vehicle most appropriate?’
 Appropriate in different situations (say settlement patterns, topo.,
or road), depending mostly on size & cost.
• TS ideally have fences & roofs. Waste removed frequently to prevent
unsightly & unhygienic conditions developing.
• Routes for collection vehicles carefully planned  efficient & cover
the shortest distances.
• Private sector can increase efficiency. But, all sy. need effective plan,
mng’t & operation  successful & financially viable.
Q1. Explain whether the waste collection vehicles would be better
suited to primary or secondary collections:
(a) wheelbarrow,
(b) donkey cart &
(c) flatbed truck.

Q2. Give four reasons why transfer stations are needed.

Q3. Assume that you are SW collection manager for a small town.
What equipment would you need to run effective SWM system?

Q4. How could you encourage private sector waste collection

enterprises to serve HHs that cannot afford to pay for the service?
Answer to Q1
• Wheelbarrow - only suitable for primary collections. While it can
work in most crowded areas, not suitable for transporting waste >
~100 m.

• Donkey cart - mainly used for primary collections. In situation waste

disposal site close to town (~1 km) & road condition good, may be
possible to use donkey cart for 2dary transport.

• Flatbed truck - mainly used for 2dary collections from TSs &
communal bins - too large to use in many areas. However, it may be
used for primary collections from markets & business premises.
Answer to Q2
• The main reasons to use TS:
 allow waste to be deposited close to where it is produced &
then be taken to disposal sites more than a few kms away
 reduce illegal dumping
 make collection & transport sy. more efficient & cost-effective
 allow waste to be screened to remove recyclable materials
Answer to Q3
• This system would need:
 primary collection vehicles (mainly carts & barrows)
 communal waste storage bins for individuals & primary collectors
to deposit wastes in
 TSs to collect & store waste from primary collections & communal
bins. TSs should be built on hardstanding & be fenced-off. They
need sufficient containers, loader (or other loading device), covered
storage area & staff amenity building.
 2dary collection vehicles to take waste from TS to final disposal site.
Answer to Q4
• The private sector waste collection enterprises could be paid fee directly
from kebele based on total volume of waste that they deliver to TS.