The Role of Socio-Economic and Cultural Factors in Municipal Solid Waste Generation: A Case Study in Taman Perling, Johor Bahru

Satu daripada masalah utama dalam pembangunan sistem pengurusan sisa pepejal bersepadu di Malaysia ialah kekurangan data menyeluruh tentang penjanaan dan komposisi sisa. Perkara ini perlu diatasi demi memudahkan perancangan pengurusan pada masa akan datang. Walaupun terdapat banyak kajian tentang sisa pepejal, antaranya ialah Abd. Karim et al. (1996), Sabarinah (1997), dan Salim et al. (1994), tetapi model dan pendekatan yang lebih jelas masih diperlukan bagi menentukan faktor yang mempengaruhi penjanaan sisa pepejal oleh sesebuah komuniti di Malaysia. Kajian yang telah dijalankan di Taman Perling, Johor Bahru mendapati bahawa faktor pendapatan, pendidikan, lain-lain faktor kemasyarakatan kurang mempengaruhi jumlan penjanaan sisa pepejal domestik. Hanya faktor saiz isi rumah dan cara hidup menunjukkan korelasi terhadap jumlah sisa yang dijana. Jumlah sisa berkorelasi secara positif dengan saiz isi rumah, tetapi berkorelasi secara negatif terhadap kekerapan makan di luar rumah. Ini bermakna, pada lazimnya, keluarga besar menjana jumlah sisa yang lebih banyak daripada keluarga yang bersaiz kecil. Begitu juga dengan mereka yang jarang mengunjungi restoran atau gerai makan didapati menghasilkan sisa lebih berbanding keluarga yang kerap makan di luar rumah. Hasil kajian memberi perspektif yang baru terhadap teori penjanaan sisa yang selama ini kerap mengaitkan aspek pendapatan dan faktor sosioekonomi dengan jumlah sisa domestik. Penemuan ini juga mengajar kita supaya lebih prihatin terhadap faktor sosial dan gaya hidup yang mempengaruhi tren penjanaan sisa, seterusnya dalam usaha menangani masalah pengurusan sisa pepejal domestik pada masa akan datang. Kata kunci: sisa domestik; faktor sosioekonomi; saiz keluarga; cara hidup dan tabiat pemakanan The absence of a comprehensive database on solid waste generation and composition appears to be the major drawback to the development of an integrated waste management system in Malaysia. While many studies have been conducted on related fields, such as Abd. Karim et al. (1996), Sabarinah (1997) and Salim et al. (1994), there is still a lack of clear model or approach in determining attributes influencing the amount of wastes generated by our community. A study conducted in Taman Perling, Johor Bahru has showns that such as attributes as income, education, and other socio-economic factors barely affect the amount of waste generated. It seems that only family size and lifestyle factors, particularly the eating habits of residents, contribute significantly to variations in the generation of residential waste in the study area. While the amount increases with the size of family, it decreases as the respondents dine out more often. This study suggests new insights concerning the role of social factors and lifestyle in affecting the generation of household waste. Key words: Domestic waste generation; socio-economic factors; family size; lifestyle; eating habits

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Effects of socio-economic factors on quantity and type of municipal solid waste

Management of Environmental Quality An International Journal ◽

10.1108/meq-11-2019-0244 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 31 (4) ◽

pp. 877-894 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Kaveri Kala ◽

Nomesh B. Bolia ◽

Sushil

Keyword(s):

Solid Waste ◽

Logistic Models ◽

Secondary Data ◽

Household Waste ◽

Primary Data ◽

Economic Factors ◽

Waste Generation ◽

Resource Requirement ◽

Content Type ◽

Socio Economic Factors

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to determine the socio-economic factors related to household solid waste generation and its type based on field surveys in South Delhi Municipal Corporation area in Delhi, India.Design/methodology/approachThis paper develops a framework to systematically identify the socio-economic factors related to household waste generation and its type. The framework uses both primary and secondary data. The primary data are collected through the instruments of questionnaire and interviews, and the secondary data are collected from the literature available in public domain. Multinomial logistic models are developed. The models are analyzed using the SPSS software version 22.0.FindingsThe study reports that socio-economic parameters like monthly income of the family, number of family members, occupation, education are statistically significant predictors. Further, detailed disaggregated models reveal more insights that are not apparent otherwise, such as the number of females can also be a significant factor for a targeted socio-economic group.Practical implicationsThe results can help in forecasting the resource requirement for waste collection, establishment of processing facilities and other policy planning measures for effective waste management, as summarized in the discussion.Originality/valueA systematic process to determine resource requirement according to socio-economic (and consequently spatial) group constitute an important component of the novelty of this study. Further, it provides new insights on the role of various socio-economic factors in determining the quantity and composition of household waste, e.g. quantity and type of waste can also be affected by male and female qualification within a socio-economic category.

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