Solid Waste Management in the Pacific

Samoa Country Snapshot

BACKGROUND the generation of MSW by commercial and institutional
establishments, the volume of which is currently unknown.
Samoa consists of two principal islands and eight islets,
with a combined land area of 2,944 square kilometers (km2). Specific data on the kinds of wastes generated on Samoa
Samoa’s current population is estimated to be about 189,300. is not available, but MSW in Pacific island countries in
In 2012, per capita gross domestic product was 8,317 tala general includes an extremely high proportion—nearly 60%
(around $3,600).1 by weight—of organic, or biodegradable, materials. Next
come recyclable substances, like paper, plastics, glass, and
The island of Upolu, with an area of 1,125 km2, is the metals, each constituting between 6% and 12% of the waste
second largest island in Samoa. It has a population of by weight. Other wastes include household hazardous waste,
approximately 138,000, including about 38,000 living in textiles, and construction and demolition debris.
Apia, the nation’s capital, which is located on the north
coast. The rest of the population lives in about 170 villages, Waste Collection and Transfer
primarily along a narrow coastal fringe around the island. All Field observations show that, for the most part, Upolu is a
of Upolu Island, including the capital city of Apia, is served relatively clean and garbage-free island, where those who
by one solid waste management (SWM) system. generate household and commercial wastes are careful
in the way they handle, store, and dispose of it. Most
households keep wastes on a raised platform, ready for
TECHNICAL ASPECTS collection by a waste pickup truck. The platforms range
from flimsy wooden structures to well-designed steel ones.
Little data is available on the amounts and types of The objective of the raised platforms is to keep scavenging
municipal solid waste (MSW) generated on Upolu, as animals away from the MSW, which was a major issue in
regular waste assessments are not undertaken. Information the past. This unconventional collection system is widely
that is currently available indicates that per capita MSW accepted. The only problem is that, unlike standard “wheelie
generation in different parts of Upolu varies between 0.38 bin” systems, the waste is not completely enclosed; and is
kilograms (kg) and 0.48 kg per person per day, depending therefore subject to rain and wind impacts. It is common
on income levels, extent of urbanization, and other factors. for households to compost green waste on their properties,
MSW generation rates are most likely considerably higher as well as to segregate and use food waste, such as taro and
in Apia than in the villages. Assuming an average per banana peelings, as animal feed.
capita generation rate of 0.45 kg per person per day and a
population of 138,000, the MSW household generation rate A relatively small number of households, around 5% of
is therefore about 60 tons per day, or more than 20,000 the total, still either burn their waste; or dump it within their
tons per year. From mid-2012 until the year 2030, assuming property boundaries or in vacant areas, rivers, or the ocean.
nominal growth in population and per capita waste
generation, Upolu is therefore expected to generate in excess Commercial MSW is stored in a range of steel material
of 350,000 tons of household waste, which is a significant and other containers.
amount for a small island nation. Added to this would be

1 ADB. 2013. Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific 2013. Manila.
2 Solid Waste Management in the Pacific

MSW is collected in standard waste compactor trucks relatively large and extremely well laid out. It covers an
and open-top trucks, mostly twice a week, but daily in area of 950 meters by 350 meters (over 30 hectares); and
congested urban areas. There are five private sector service has internal access roads, a gatehouse, a recycling materials
companies operating through government-funded 3-year segregation and storage area, a hazardous waste incinerator,
contracts. MSW is collected from every household on Upolu. waste water lagoons, and a landfill.
Each contractor has a specific collection zone, and operates
to agreed performance standards. Should there be a case The site has a fence on the northern side, and uninhabited
of poor performance by one of the collection contractors, agricultural land with relatively thick vegetation to the east,
a procedure is in place to enforce performance, leading south, and west. It has only one major access point, which goes
to termination of the contract if necessary. Contractors past the main gatehouse. The site is supervised and managed by
also deal directly with commercial and institutional the government. There are a number of authorized operatives
establishments, collecting and transferring their MSW to at the site, including machine drivers and a group of metal scrap
the disposal facility. In many cases, establishments transport waste segregators.
their MSW to the facility. Commercial and institutional
wastes are subject to a tipping fee, the charge levied for Authorization is needed to access the site. Truck
receiving waste at a disposal facility. movements are relatively well-managed. The gatehouse,
office, and ancillary building are permanent structures at
Waste Recycling the entrance, with good visibility of vehicles entering and
Many households segregate waste components, including leaving the site. Tipping fees are paid at the gatehouse.
food waste used as animal feed and green waste used as Although unpaved, the site access roads are in good
compost. Many also reuse valuable items, such as plastic condition, allowing traffic to move freely to and from the
containers. landfill and other facilities.

A few recycling initiatives have been attempted on MSW is dumped and spread over a wide surface area and
Upolu on an ad hoc basis, but currently there is only one covered with soil. This method unnecessarily exposes people
commercial-scale private sector recycler on the island. to large areas of waste and also increases the potential of
This is a metals recycling company called Pacific Recyclers, rain infiltration. The disposal surface is generally untidy,
which collects and processes ferrous and nonferrous with large areas of scattered wastes. Conventional composite
metal scrap and ships to Australia, the Republic of Korea, liner systems are not installed in the facility, although basic
and New Zealand for resale. They ship 20-foot containers compaction of the underlying soils is completed prior to the
averaging 12 containers per month, with a laden weight of placement of waste.
approximately 20 tons each. The recycling yard is located
adjacent to the island’s only municipal disposal facility, the Leachate collection, which minimizes the effect of
Tafaigata landfill facility. hazardous liquids escaping from waste, is confined to
rudimentary leachate collection pipes that drain leachate
Although not yet operative, a tire-recycling center is under gravity to a primary holding pond near the landfill.
being developed adjacent to the existing metals recycler. Although a conventional landfill gas (LFG) collection and
There are no systems in place for the effective disposal of retention system is not installed at the facility, it is reported
end of life vehicles and white goods. that LFG pipes are installed in the waste cells, allowing LFG
to escape into the atmosphere without treatment or flaring.
The government is yet to develop and promote long-term,
island-wide waste minimization, waste reduction, and recycling The Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
programs on Upolu, although it is committed to introducing and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environmental
these initiatives. Programme (SPREP) have been actively involved in the
development and operation of the Tafaigata facility and
Waste Disposal the overall SWM system. Assistance has been extended from
Upolu’s MSW is transferred directly to the Tafaigata sanitary as early as over a decade ago to the time when the dumpsite
landfill facility, the only designated municipal landfill on the was upgraded. JICA and SPREP have recommended actions
island. The facility is located about 10 km west of Apia, in a to be taken in the SWM sector that include (i) banning of
relatively remote agricultural area, at an elevation ranging uncovered MSW transfer trucks, (ii) improving monitoring
from 110 to 140 meters above sea level. It is well connected of MSW collection contracts, and (iii) strengthening overall
by feeder roads to Apia and other areas. The facility is long-term planning for the sector.
 Samoa Country Snapshot 3

Tafaigata Sanitary Landfill Facility Photo by N. Allen

Medical Waste Management

The Ministry of Health (MOH) is directly responsible INSTITUTIONAL ASPECTS
for regulating the medical waste management system.
The National Health Service operates the system for the The main legislative document concerning SWM in Samoa
collection, storage, transfer, treatment, and disposal of is the Waste Management Act 2010. The Act covers the
medical waste. The system includes a color-coded bin system collection, management, disposal, and recycling of solid
to allow for the segregation of infectious and hazardous waste. The Act provides for registration and licensing of
wastes from general MSW (yellow for medical waste and waste operators, permits for dumping and inciderating
green for MSW). A special-purpose vehicle collects medical wastes, sets environmental standards for the management
waste from the four regional hospitals, 20 clinics, three of waste, and provides for community involvement in waste
mortuaries, and other smaller facilities on the island; and management.
transfers the wastes directly to the national hospital in Apia.
From here, all medical wastes are transferred to the medical The institutions involved in SWM are the following:
waste incinerator at the Tafaigata disposal facility for
thermal treatment. The ash is placed in a pit located at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.
disposal facility, and the pit is covered every day with soil. The Waste Management Section of the Ministry of Natural
Resources and Environment (MNRE) manages the SWM
The two-chamber incinerator operates 7 days a week, sector with a small team: a chief executive officer, two
handling an average of 12 240-liter wheelie bins of medical senior officers, two junior offices, and seven cashiers. They
wastes every day. Four full-time staff are involved in system have offices in Apia and at the Tafaigata disposal facilities.
operations: a driver, an incinerator operator, and two other In addition to the overall planning and management of
operatives. The MOH has completed training programs sector activities, this team is also responsible for contract
for health professionals, including in the safe segregation procurement and management of Samoa’s six collection
of wastes. JICA and the World Bank have been actively contracts.
involved in developing and funding the medical waste
management system on Upolu, which operates relatively Ministry of Finance. The ministry allocates funds received
well. from overseas donors for SWM projects and programs.
4 Solid Waste Management in the Pacific

Ministry of Health. The ministry is responsible for the areas served, and the limited quantities of waste collected
regulation of the medical waste management system, which compared with the distance travelled. Private haulers’
is operated directly by its National Health Service. charges for commercial and institutional MSW collection
and transport appear to match the generators’ ability and
Ministry of Women, Community and Social willingness to pay. Commercial and institutional MSW,
Development. The ministry plays a vital part in the and privately generated medical wastes, provide additional
development of Samoa’s 300 or so villages. Village revenue to the government through the tipping fees charged
representatives meet ministry officials monthly to discuss at the landfill facility.
development concerns and learn of government strategies.
SWM is often one of these concerns. The ministry’s Family
and Community Wellbeing Program promotes village, PUBLIC AWARENESS
household, and general environmental cleanliness, including
composting, in over 200 villages. MNRE supports Waste Awareness Day every year; publishes
monthly environmental newsletters; and invests in initiatives
International donor agencies. JICA, SPREP, and the such as biogas and composting projects. The Ministry of
International Finance Corporation (IFC) have been active Women, Community and Social Development, working in
in the sector, providing support and targeted investments most villages in Samoa, actively promotes environmental
for the MSW. The IFC is currently providing support to the cleanliness, of which SWM is an integral part.
Government of Samoa to competitively tender a concession
for the country’s solid waste management operations. In a 2012 survey of 50 randomly selected individuals on
Upolu island, 90% of respondents said they use municipal
Samoa Umbrella for Nongovernment Organizations. An SWM service. All respondents opposed the imposition of
umbrella organization that assists vulnerable Samoan groups; SWM tariffs, many of them strongly. An impressive 86% were
and provides inputs to government policy from willing to further educate themselves, their families, and the
nongovernment organizations, including community-based community on SWM. About half considered the municipal
and civil society bodies. These organizations are acutely aware MSW collection service good and 6% found it very good;
of the status, deficiencies, and needs of the SWM sector; and, 28% said the service was poor and 16%, very poor. About 46%
through their network of members, are able to influence of respondents rated collection contractor performance good.
policy in SWM and the environmental sector, in general. About two-thirds considered the frequency of waste
collection good, while one-third said it was poor.

FINANCIAL ASPECTS
CONCLUSIONS
According to the MNRE, in 2012, the government budget
for the SWM sector was 2.281 million tala, equivalent In comparison with many other Pacific SWM systems,
to $0.97 million. This budget funds the MSW collection the system on Upolu is well advanced. To further improve
contracts, Tafaigata landfill equipment contract, landfill the sector, three areas of support have been identified:
maintenance works, and cleaning of public areas. Funding formulation of a national SWM strategy and development of
is provided directly from the central government budget, an island-wide waste minimization and recycling program. 
and households are not charged for solid waste collection or
disposal. Commercial and institutional MSW is collected and
transferred by private sector operators under individually FOR INFORMATION, CONTACT
negotiated arrangements. All commercial and institutional Allison Woodruff
MSW entering the landfill is subject to tipping fees. The Urban Development Specialist
NHS charges fees for the collection and transfer of medical Urban, Social Development and Public
wastes from private medical waste generators, and are also Management Division
subject to tipping fees at the landfill site. Pacific Department, Asian Development Bank
awoodruff@adb.org
The MNRE is able to provide a reliable and relatively
cost-effective service to the entire island of Upolu, despite OR VISIT www.adb.org/Samoa
facing significant challenges in the remoteness of some

© Asian Development Bank Publication Stock No. ARM146613-2 June 2014