Waste, Water, and Well-being: The Health and Justice Burdens of Sachet Water in Urban Ghana

First name: 
Adoma
Last name: 
Addo
Class Year: 
2022
Advisor: 
Kalyanakrishnan Sivaramakrishnan
Essay Abstract: 
The increasing rates of plastic waste generation present a growing health and environmental justice burden on a global scale, driven by high consumption lifestyles and waste mismanagement. In the West African city of Accra, the burdens of plastic waste are aggravated by a dearth of safe, accessible, and sustainable drinking water sources. Plastic-based packaged water options such as sachet water fill the gaps in access to potable water, but in the absence of accessible recycling and waste collection services on a city-wide basis, many sachet water packages are improperly disposed of, creating additional issues for health, aquatic ecosystems, and safety in the face of a changing global climate. This essay is an investigation into the conceptualizations of environmental justice and sustainable development in Ghana, considering the benefits and limitations of existing solutions in the public and private sectors. Combining global and Afrocentric approaches to environmental justice, I argue that efforts to address the burden of plastic waste and water justice must consider efforts beyond the private sector and inclusive of the informal sector, contextualized by the historical legacies of colonial injustice that manifest as present-day inequalities. Community-based solutions and participatory initiatives for plastic waste management offer new opportunities for stakeholder integration.