Strategic solid waste management planning for Yangon City, Myanmar

Yangon City in Myanmar needs proper environmental planning primarily on solid waste management in the face of rapid population increase and urbanization. The study focused on the analysis of the City's problems and issues of solid waste management and the ensuing formulation of a Strategic Solid Waste Management Plan. The current waste generation rate is 0.465 kg/capita/day in Yangon City with a bulk density of 250 kg/cu m. Kitchen wastes and garden trimmings constitute 65 percent of the total wastes while plastic, paper and cardboard 18 percent and the rest (17 percent) composed of glass, cans, textile, leather, and rubber. The existing solid waste management system in Yangon City is basically labor-intensive, the service area does not cover the entire city, and the final disposal sites are not sufficient for the volume of wastes. The quantity of daily wastes collected is about 671.5 tons out of the total generation of 1912 tons, or a collection rate of 35 percent. Financially, the cost incurred by Pollution Control and Cleansing Department (PCCD) in collecting and disposing of solid waste in 2003-2004 was Ks 4,932/ton (or US dollar 4.9) or about Ks 2.3/person/day (or US dollar 0.0023). The Strategic Solid Waste Management Plan has been developed following the concepts of basic planning hierarchy and participatory planning. The strategies are envisioned for 20 years (2006-2026) covering: 1) public awareness and education, 2) waste minimization, 3) waste collection and transportation, 4) waste treatment and disposal and 5) cost recovery and financial sustainability. The Action Plan, which includes the Implementation Plan, Organizational Plan and Investment Plan is formulated for the first five years of the planning period (2006-2011). The implementation plan defines specific actions and activities to be undertaken for all the strategies identified. To fully operationalize the strategic plan, the organizational restructuring of PCCD has been proposed. The investment plan requires Ks 13,000 million (US dollar 13 million) for the implementation of the initial five years of the Action Plan. The study recommends that the strategic plan be supported with enabling policies and legislations as well as sufficient budgetary allocation for effective and successful implementation.