Impact of Poor Municipal Waste Management on Ruminant Livestock

Abstract Africa’s growing problem of poor municipal waste management has made roaming population of ruminant livestock on the continent vulnerable to the ingestion of non-digestible solid wastes. Therefore, this study identified and characterized the type of non-biodegradable wastes ingested by cattle that were presented for slaughter at the abattoir, as quick, indirect way of understanding the state and impact of poor solid waste management in Maiduguri, Nigeria. Of the of 151 cattle examined, 111 (73.5%) harbored different types of non-biodegradable solid wastes, in varying combinations of plastics and other materials (e.g., metallic objects, piece of cloth, pebbles, piece of wood, hairballs). Plastics were the most frequently isolated (95.5%) ingested solid waste (ISW), mostly comprised of polypropylene and polyethylene materials. Female animals had more ISW (in weight) than males (median weight 225.0 vs. 66.0g), and were also more discriminate and had higher rate (31.8% vs 15.2%) for ISW such as pieces of foam mattress, mosquito nets, piece of cloth (jeans etc.) and socks. These findings indirectly highlight the deterioration of solid waste management systems and its cumulative impact on ruminant livestock health and consequent economic loss to farmers. Thus, improving waste management is urgently required to improve public health and food security.