Wastes are things we consider as unfit, unwanted and discarded due to economic reasons or ignorance of alternative technologies to re-use them [1] . It can also be seen as solid, liquid or gas. Waste could also be defined as things that could be discarded as useless but that has a potential of causing death, illness or injury to people or destruction of the environment if improperly treated, stored, transported or discarded [2] .

According to [1] , waste can be defined as substance and materials, which are disposed off according to the provision of national Law. In the same vein, Oxford Dictionary defines wastes as that which is not or cannot be used or no longer in use. In essence, waste materials if not well managed, could result to serious hazards. The generation of solid waste is as old as man’s creation and activities. The problem of solid waste is one of the most serious environmental problems facing the world at large. According to [3] , he observed that in recent years solid waste generation in metropolitan cities had increased extraordinarily. According to him, the problem of waste can be linked to the fact that population is on the increase and the rate of consumption by various individuals increases by the day, which on the other hand has led to an increase in the amount of waste generated. Solid waste constitutes a major urban environmental paralysis; a clog on the wheel of progress in terms of urban environmental purity and sanitation [4] . Solid waste causes pollution and contributes to global warming which in turn has a negative impact on man and environment. The presence of undisposed waste in a place causes different types of diseases, filth and unsightliness of the environment which affect the lives of human, animals and aquatic organisms.

The sampling technique adopted in the study is the simple random sampling technique. It was applied on the population of the study area as given by [7] . The area includes Choba, Eliozu, Rumuokoro, Rumuodumaya, and Rumuolumeni communities. In each of these communities, scrap metal collection centers were chosen using the random sampling method in which five communities were selected from the three (3) zones and three (3) centers from each community as shown in Table 1. Furthermore to derive the sample size, the statistical formula by [8] was applied. At the end the population size was reduced to a manageable size of 180 for questionnaire administration. The formula is thus

where n = sample size;

N = total population;

1 = constant;

e = level of significance (0.005)².

Field Research 2014.

Various characteristics of scavengers were included in the questionnaire and analyzed. These characteristics were age, sex, educational status, number of years in the business, place of origin, estimated income generated by scavengers etc.

In Table 2 sex of respondents and Table 3 age of scavengers, Figure 1 as cited in the text corroborates the assertion in Table 2. The age and the sex structure of scavengers show that 100% are males and 0% is females. In the age structure, most scavengers are at the peak of their productive years that is between 20 - 30 years of age which has 52.6% response in the sample. This is so because scavenging is labour intensive and females are not involved. Age is another indicator that determines the capacity of this type of profession because the work is for youths and not the elderly who may not withstand the stress of scavenging which involves movement from one waste dump to another searching for waste products of interest. This is corroborated in the Figure 2 as cited in the text.

In terms of educational status of scavengers, it can be shown in Table 4 and Figure 3 that 59.8% have no formal education, while 27.6% have only primary education, 12.1% have secondary education and no person has tertiary education. From this analysis, it is obvious that majority of scavengers are not educated.

In Table 5 and Figure 4, with respect to the number of years in the business, it shows that 68.7% have been in the business for just 1 - 5 years, while 29.7% have been in it for 6 - 10 years and 1.1% for 11 - 15 years. The above analysis signifies that scavenging is new in this part of the world, but it is self sustaining.

The response on the place of origin of scavengers shows that 97.6% are from other States, while 2.2% are from the State (Table 6 and Figure 5). The indigenes of Rivers State feel that the business is dirty and dehumanizing, therefore does not get involved.

Table 7 and Figure 6 show that 28.1% generate ₦50,000 while 60.8% generate ₦100,000 from scrap metal sales. This analysis shows that it is a lucrative business which keeps people self employed as well as keeps the local government clean.

Hypothesis: Relationship between volume of scrap metal waste and the amount of money realizable.

H_o: There is no significant relationship between volume of scrap metal generated and the amount of money realizable.

Table 8 shows the five sampled communities and their scores and relationship between the scrap metals and the amount realized from the business. The total scores shows = 33.83 calculated value. Thus, the degree of freedom = 4. Therefore, the critical value from the chi-square table against 4 degree of freedom at the 95% probability level = 9.49. The decision rule thus is; the calculated value of 33.83 is greater than the critical value

of 9.49, we therefore reject the null hypothesis and accept the alternate hypothesis, which says that the amount of money realizable from scrap metal is dependent on the volume generated of scrap gathered.

The hypothesis tested in the research has highlighted some major findings that the activities of scavengers creates employment and also assist in the cleanliness of the environment. Furthermore, from Table 4, which shows the educational attainment of the scavengers, it revealed that 59.8% do not have any formal education which is why they carry out the activities without recourse to safety and their health is at risk. Table 7 shows that scavenging is a profession that not only creates employment but also generates income which if encouraged by the government can serve as a source provision of employment for the teaming youths and generation of in-

ternal revenue to local government, the state and the federal government. The hypothesis test proved that there exist a relationship between the volume of scrap metal waste recycled and the amount of money that can be realized.

Measures to achieve effective activities of scavengers in scrap metal recycling in the local government and state some recommendations are suggested:

・ There should be promulgated a law by the government to encourage scavenging, protection and remuneration so as to make it attractive to the youths.

・ That since scavenging provides and benefits our society; it should be supported and not persecuted. The scavengers should be formally recruited by the government to carry out the segregation of solid waste which will reduce the amount of waste that needs to be collected for disposal.

・ For those who make their livelihood from collecting, sorting, or otherwise handling waste, measures should be adopted to provide them with the requisite safety.

Protective wears to improve their work environment.