Circular Online asks what the cost of poor waste management practices is to human health, and looks at examples from the UK and around the world.
For many people, waste is a fact of life that is easy to ignore. Buy something, use it, then throw it in the bin. Once their bin is collected, the waste is out of their lives for good. However, this is only a reality if there are robust, effective, and comprehensive waste management systems in place where they live.
When these systems don’t exist, waste can have a severe, detrimental impact on human health. And, unfortunately, looking away from the problem doesn’t make it go away.
The health impact
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has found that poorly managed solid waste is driving a ‘public health crisis’.
When waste is dumped, burned, or poorly treated, it can release hazardous chemicals, contaminate drinking-water sources, and create breeding grounds for insects and rodents.
Shockingly, these terrible conditions can be found in sites across the UK, next to schools, businesses, and homes. One of the most outrageous examples of recent years is Walleys Quarry landfill site in Newcastle-under-Lyme.
The site, which was once a clay quarry, became a landfill in 1997 and operated without significant complaints for over 20 years. However, after the landfill was purchased by Walleys Quarry Ltd in 2016, residents soon began to complain of disgusting odours coming from the site.
This wasn’t just a case of obnoxious smells. In 2021, Dr Ian Sidha, a consultant respiratory paediatrician, found that toxic fumes from the site were causing a ‘public health emergency’.
A landmark high court judgement also ruled that a five-year-old boy’s life expectancy had been shortened due to exposure to hydrogen sulphide fumes emitted from the landfill.
Walleys Quarry was finally ordered to close in 2024 after years of protests. The Environment Agency concluded that management of the site was poor and that further operation of the site could lead to significant, long-term pollution.
This is a particularly egregious example, but it is not the only site in the UK causing significant harm. An illegal waste site dumped on the King’s estate caught fire in 2024 and forced nearby businesses and schools to close, before going on to burn for ten days.
While there are many reasons for illegal waste activity, from fly-tipping to industrial-scale dumping, the impact of improperly managed waste on human health is still the same.
This is just in the UK, a country that has invested in building up recycling and waste management infrastructure for years. What about in a country that is still building its waste systems?
Around the world
The Gambia is the smallest mainland country in Africa. Populated by two million people, it is entirely bordered by Senegal on all sides, apart from its 80 km coastline on the Atlantic Ocean, which gives The Gambia its nickname of the ‘Smiling Coast of Africa’.
The country suffers from extreme poverty and ranks 170 out of 189 countries on the Human Development Index – a composite statistic of life expectancy, per capita income indicators and education.
The majority of waste generated in The Gambia is often burned or dumped in informal landfill sites. Much of this waste also ends up polluting the River Gambia, which flows inland from the ocean for around 320km.
However, things are beginning to gradually improve. In 2023, the Lord Mayor of Kanifing Municipal Council (KMC) told former CIWM President Dr Anna Willetts about how the KMC has established a formal waste-collection system using a fleet of 24 collection trucks in Banjul, the country’s capital and most populous region.
During the visit to The Gambia, Dr Willetts heard that the KMC’s main challenges are a lack of mechanics to maintain the fleet and the difficulty importing parts for the Chinese-made equipment.
This is an example of the practical everyday problems that can contribute to waste being left uncollected in communities across the city.
UK-based non-governmental organisation WasteAid has built up a presence in The Gambia since 2015. Part of WasteAid’s work in the country has been to help implement solutions to these practical issues.
WasteAid helped to deliver The Gambia’s first waste composition analysis and, as part of a project with the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM), developed a Circular Economy Network in the Greater Banjul Area.
Circular Online spoke to WasteAid in 2023 about the project, which aimed to fast-track solutions to the circular economy. However, surprisingly, the focus wasn’t on the environment.
WasteAid told us the project intended to support the poorest and most vulnerable communities in The Gambia by creating jobs and business opportunities in the circular economy.
One of the ways they’re doing this is by offering relevant training opportunities based on feedback from members of the Network.
The approach works because the local communities and municipalities know what waste management challenges they have, and WasteAid supports them to implement long-term solutions.
Waste management is linked to human health
Waste management is intrinsically linked to health. Its importance only increases in countries without widely accessible healthcare.
However, even in countries with a healthcare system that is free at the point of use and generally accessible, like the UK, poor waste management is having severe consequences for human health, not only the environment.
At the ISWA World Congress 2026, one of the key themes covers how every individual should be free from any harmful effects of waste.
Abstract submissions for the Congress are now open, inviting evidence-based contributions that speak directly to these shared challenges. Early bird tickets are also available, offering reduced rates for those planning ahead to attend and participate in what promises to be one of the most significant global waste events of the decade.
For further information on submitting an abstract or securing early bird tickets, visit the ISWA World Congress 2026.
