The Current Status of the Solid Waste Landfill in Al-Saleh Gardens, Taiz Governorate, Yemen, and Its Impact on the Environment and Human Health: A Study in Environmental Geography

Abstract

The solid waste landfill in the city of Taiz has become a serious problem that has adversely affected both human health and the environment as a consequence of the war in Yemen. This situation led to the selection of a landfill site for the city in a random manner, resulting in severe environmental and humanitarian impacts. The study problem focused on the effects of the solid waste landfill on human health and the environment in Taiz City, where the random selection of the landfill site contributed to a range of environmental and humanitarian disasters. The study aimed to examine the current status of the solid waste landfill and its administrative management, conduct an evaluation of the landfill site, assess its suitability according to established landfill selection criteria, identify the environmental impacts associated with the landfill and its various adverse effects, and explore ways to reduce pollution risks, particularly air, soil, and water resource contamination in the surrounding environment. The study also sought to reach a set of findings, the most important of which was that the landfill site was selected randomly on sloping terrain near residential areas without consideration of its environmental impacts and without any engineering measures to modify and isolate the site from surrounding soils and groundwater. The study presented both urgent and long-term recommendations intended to assist decision-makers and professionals in the solid waste sector. These recommendations included relocating the current landfill to an alternative site located away from residential areas and selecting a location that meets appropriate environmental standards. The study adopted the descriptive, analytical, and environmental approaches, in addition to several other research procedures.