An Assessment of Practices on Disposal of Solar E-Waste in Lusaka, Zambia

Purpose: End-of-life (EoL) management of solar products is an emerging issue, primarily because most industrial designs have not considered the impacts of the products when they reach their end-of-life stage. The aim of the study was to assess the practices on the disposal of solar e-waste among the residents of Lusaka, Zambia. Design/Methodology/Approach: This study employed cross sectional descriptive design, with quantitative methods used. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire from 104 respondents who were purposively sampled and drawn from four zones of Lusaka west namely Hill view, Kapapa, Gomorra and Malcom. These included households using solar as a source of energy. The collected data was analysed using descriptive statistics. Findings: The study revealed lack of knowledge regarding how solar products must be managed after EoL. Furthermore, that some of practices used in the disposal of solar e-waste were not the best practices, these practices included: throwing in bins or pits, this practice was confirmed with 71.2% participants, sell to informal recyclers 2.0% participants confirmed this and storing confirmed by 79.8% participants. With a mean score of 3.33 the study revealed that financial incentive was a factor contributing to how solar e-waste was being handled by the informal recycling sector. Results further revealed that disposal of Solar E-waste was poorly regulated and lacked sufficiently safe infrastructure. Majority of the respondents with a mean score 4.59 strongly agreed that there is lack of regulation and policy on solar e-waste handling. Implications/Research Limitations: The present study did not capture other types of electronic-waste during data collection, but rather focused on EoL solar products. Similar study aimed at assessing the management of other types of electronic-waste would provide further information necessary in developing even more comprehensive policies. Practical Implications: The findings of the current study are essential in informing policy and necessary legal framework on sustainable solar waste management. Originality/Value: With the advent of climate change and the need for climate resilient green buildings, the use of solar products as a strategy in reducing energy consumption is being promoted, however, few studies have been done focusing at management of solar e-waste which if not properly managed could be harmful to the environment. The current study is among the first to be carried out in Zambia, and thus provides relevant information necessary in managing solar e-waste.