Cross-sectional survey of non-hazardous waste composition and quantities in industrial sector and potential recycling in Jordan

01.Dec.2019

​Generation of different types and quantities of non-hazardous solid waste in the industrial sector are subject to different factors including the type of industry, production capacity, and raw materials involved in the production processes. The present study is a cross-sectional descriptive study which was conducted in 400 industries in Jordan in 2016. A structured questionnaire was used to collect all data related to the industrial processes, the types and quantities of waste generation, waste management practices and other general data. Moreover, quick-walk through assessment and observations were needed to get more details in some industries. The collected data were statistically analyzed using SPSS 19 software. Based on the results, the monthly generation rate of waste and daily waste generation per worker indicators were determined as 10,580.3 tonnes/month and 10.16 kg per day per worker, respectively. Also, it was found that the chemical industries followed by the agricultural and food Industries were the most waste generating sectors with 47.7% and 35.26%, respectively. Breaking down by NHIW category type, plastics (31.9%) and metals (28%) constituted about 59.9% of total waste generated. While only 28% of the industries showed recycling practice which is not very common in the surveyed industries, segregation of solid waste was reported by nearly 54.3% of industries within the five sectors. Moreover, the total waste generation was extrapolated based on the currently existing number of workers (93030 workers) in the five industrial sectors, and consequently estimated to equal 331743.7 tonnes per year. Finally, in total more than $71 million per year can be gained by expenses savings and recyclables selling of NHIW categories.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/333629397_Cross-sectional_survey_of_non-hazardous_waste_composition_and_quantities_in_industrial_sector_and_potential_recycling_in_Jordan​