| dc.description.abstract | The leather industry in Uganda contributes to the national economy in addition to environmental
and waste management of the waste generated from the food processing industry by converting
hides and skins into leather through a series of production processes using different chemical and
mechanical methods. However, this industry sector uses old and inefficient technology that leads
to the unsustainable use of resources and subsequent generation of wastes that are laden with
pollutants detrimental to the environment. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to
evaluate the production processes’ performance of Skyfat Tannery in Jinja district, Uganda.
The study used both qualitative and quantitative research methods of data collection. The
production processes used by Skyfat Tannery were identified and the quantities of material
inputs and waste outputs i.e., solids, water, and chemicals were established using material flow
analysis for all production process stages at Skyfat Tannery. The types, quantities, and
management practices of the generated solid wastes were established. Wastewater management
and treatment at Skyfat Tannery were established. Selected parameters namely; TSS, TDS,
turbidity, BOD5, COD, electrical conductivity (EC), pH, sulphides, chromium VI, total
chromium, total coliforms, zinc, lead, iron, oil and grease, magnesium, manganese, nitrates,
phosphates, and sulphates were characterised in the wastewater and the wastewater treatment
performance determined.
Skyfat mostly uses conventional methods of production to process hides and/or skins and also
employs some cleaner production processes which include green fleshing, industrial symbiosis,
and mechanical desalting. Per tonne of wet salted hides, it was established that on average the
total amount of chemicals and water used for all the production process stages at Skyfat Tannery
was 2758.5 kg and 129.8 m3 respectively resulting in solids and wastewater laden with
pollutants. The solid wastes generated by the tannery include fleshings, splits, hair, trimmings,
and raw hides offcuts. Most solid wastes were generated from beam-house production processes.
Eighty-two percent of the generated solid waste was used in industrial symbiosis where it is
processed into gelatin and some exported. The tannery treated its wastewater using the pond
system for secondary treatment and constructed a wetland for tertiary treatment. The
concentration of some pollutants like BOD5, COD, TSS, TDS, Cr VI, total chromium, coliforms
among others in the wastewater discharged in the natural wetland was higher than the standard
limit set by NEMA (2020) for effluent discharge into water or land and causes loss in aquatic life
due to eutrophication and toxicity. Overall, heavy metals had the highest removal efficiency of >
80% and sulphide had one of the lowest removal efficiency of -34.4%. Therefore, there is a need
for the tannery to adopt cleaner production practices like industrial symbiosis for sludge
management; enzymes for dehairing and wastewater treatment; and wastewater recycling and
reuse to arrive at zero waste discharge. This will promote the sustainable use of resources and
better environmental performance hence making it competitive at not only national but
international levels. | en_US |
