Spatial assessment and identification of suitable landfills for solid waste disposal in Madang Urban, Papua New Guinea

Abstract

Change is inevitable in any society that is geared to improving themselves and their surrounding environment, and with that change comes its negative impacts. One such negative impact is solid waste management. The study seeks to identify suitable sites for landfills in the Madang Urban area. Landfill suitability criteria such as roads, rivers and environmental resources are criteria that must be considered in site selection of Landfill sites. A cost-effective measure involving Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is the approach that has been identified for this study. The Madang urban local government needs this technology to improve its decision making in areas of waste management. The township is fast becoming an industrial centre from its once small population that prides itself in its tourism and hospitality. In this study, seven landfill site criteria were investigated. They include the river zones, the commercial zones, the industrial zones, land use land cover, slope, soil texture, and major roads. The selected criteria were given distances that are favourable for landfill sites to be located from the urban centre outwards. Then the buffered landfill criteria were set weightage values against them by observing their characteristics concerning landfill site. From there a final output map was produced, laying out both suitable and not suitable landfill sites. The technology has been used by developed countries for making informed decisions. It is a decision-making tool that describes space with its location. In summary, seven landfill site criteria were investigated and mapped thematically, and an output map was generated for identifying suitable and not suitable landfill sites.