Idea Transcript
Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation
STATUS OF HOUSEHOLD WASTE SEGREGATION IN MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT FOR KUCHING SOUTH CITY, SARAWAK, MALAYSIA
Tunmise Ayode Otitoju
Master of Science (Environmental Management) 2015
STATUS OF HOUSEHOLD WASTE SEGREGATION IN MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT FOR KUCHING SOUTH CITY, SARAWAK, MALAYSIA
TUNMISE AYODE OTITOJU 13020167
A thesis submitted In fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science (Environmental Management)
Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation Universiti Malaysia Sarawak 2015
DEDICATION Every challenging work needs self efforts as well as guidance of elders especially those who were very close to my heart. My humble effort I dedicate to my sweet and loving Father and Mother, whose affection, love, encouragement and prayers made me attain this great achievement, along with my hardworking and respected Supervisors.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I offer my sincere gratitude to the greatest of all potters, who designed us in His image by setting the plastic clay rolling, so we can wonderfully be like Him. I appreciate Him for His mercies and protection over me, and for His grace and opportunity bestowed upon me for the successful completion of my thesis, and most importantly for granting me perfect health throughout the duration of my studies at Universiti Malaysia Sarawak.
Acknowledgments are also owed to a large number of individuals. Special thanks are due to the following:
Prof Dr. Lau Seng (my main supervisor) for his unwavering support and invaluable advice. He has supported me during this course of study with patience, encouragement, constructive criticism, knowledge and deep intellectual insight. Prof Dr. Gabriel Tonga Noweg (my cosupervisor) for his advice and assistance.
Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Prof Dr. Andrew Alek Tuen, the entire staff and friends at the Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Conservation (IBEC).
For the field work, I wish to extend my profound appreciation to the Kuching South City residents, particularly the respondents of my questionnaires. For the Key-informant survey, I would like to appreciate Mr. Kho Joo Huat and Mr. Fairuz Mohd Rambli from Kuching South City Council and Ms. Tang Hung Huong from Natural Resource and Environmental Board (NREB) for their warm acceptance, support and also took valuable time off from work to
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meet me and be interviewed progressively.
Sincere gratitude also goes to my research assistants (Angela Rabai and Lo Lee Ching) for their support during the questionnaire administration and also to Adi Shabrani for his patience and transportation aid during the course of the interview section with Natural Resource and Environmental Board and Kuching South City delegates.
It is also with great joy to mention at this point, a part of my everyday progress, my parents and my siblings: Ayodeji, Babawale, Temitope, Ibukun, Taiwo. Completing this study would not have been possible without their love, prayers, endurance and support.
I would also like to appreciate Prof Dr. G.T. Olutunla, Dr. J.M.O. Ekundayo, Mr. & Mrs. Dairo, Shaun Welman, Rotimi Shonubi, Pang Sing Tyan, Jia Qi Luei, Mowumi Dairo, David Dairo, Busayo Dairo, Oluwaseunfunmi Ojufun, Toba Ojo and all my friends for their encouragements throughout my study.
Lastly, appreciations are also due to those who have not been mentioned but had one way or another contributed directly or indirectly to this study.
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ABSTRACT Household attitudes in the community appear to be critical as their points of understanding in waste segregation eventually plays a significant role in providing answers to municipal solid waste management problems in Kuching South City. Despite the abundance of opportunities available for household waste segregation, its full potentials are yet to be exploited in Kuching South City. The objectives of this study were to determine the level of awareness and acceptance, constraints and household requirements for participation among residents of Kuching South City. It also aims to examine the existing practice in Kuching South City and hence make recommendations for effective waste segregation practice.
This study gathered data from two main sources namely secondary and primary sources. The secondary data was sourced from various related and relevant articles, books and journals. The two main techniques employed in gathering primary data were household questionnaire sampled among 228 households and face to face interview conducted with delegates from Kuching South City Council and Natural Resource and Environmental Board, Sarawak. Descriptive statistics, correlation test, independent t-test and analysis of variance were used to answer the research questions and hypotheses.
The finding shows a high rate of awareness among the respondents with major information sourced from schools whereas the municipal leaflet receives the lowest response rate. In terms of commitment and participation, there was a low participation rate among household towards waste separation. Inadequate facilities emerged as the highest constraints among all other constraints mentioned by the respondents such as awareness, knowledge, interest, time, no collectors and inconveniences. The result also revealed the provision of recycling bins as the
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highest requirement for participation among all other requirements such as provision of more campaigns, more workshops and exhibitions, regular collections, make available incentives and enforcement of legislations in waste segregation activities. Correlation tests revealed that age and gender are not significant towards waste segregation practice in Kuching South City. The independent t-test test revealed a significant difference on waste segregators and nonwaste segregators view for the legislation setup and an insignificant difference on their views for the provision of infrastructural facilities and incentives. The analysis of variance revealed an insignificant difference in households’ level of participation in waste segregation based on their socioeconomic status.
The provision of recycling bins is the surest means towards encouraging households in waste segregation practice. Also, the formulation of policies and programs to encourage households’ participation should be directed towards increasing their level of environmental and waste segregation awareness, sensitising their environmental consciousness and promoting the necessary enabling facilities. Education, promotion, publicity, workshops and exhibitions on regular basis, will produce better performance with time.
Keywords: Attitude, Critical, Household, Involvement, Waste Segregation.
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ABSTRAK Sikap masyarakat adalah sangat kritikal kerana pemahaman mereka terhadap pengasingan sampah memainkan peranan penting dalam menyelesaikan masalah dalam pengurusan sisa pepejal perbandaran di Majlis Bandaraya Kuching Selatan. Walaupun terdapat banyak peluang dalam pengasingan sampah yang boleh disertai isi rumah, potensi utamanya masih belum dikenalpasti secara menyeluruh dalam kawasan Bandaraya Kuching Selatan. Objektif kajian ini adalah untuk mengenalpasti tahap kesedaran dan penerimaan, kekangan, dan keperluan penglibatan isi rumah di kalangan penduduk Bandaraya Kuching Selatan. Kajian ini turut mengkaji amalan sedia ada di Bandaraya Kuching Selatan., dan seterusnya mencadangkan amalan pengasingan sisa yang lebih berkesan
Dua sumberdata bagi kajian ini adalah terdiri daripadaprimer dan sekunder. Sumber sekunder berpunca daripada artikel, buku, dan jurnal yang berkaitan. Teknik utama yang digunakan untuk mengumpul data primer adalah dengan menjalankan soal selidik daripada 228 isi rumah dan secara temuramah bersemuka bersama pihak perwakilan dari Majlis Bandaraya Kuching Selatan dan Lembaga Sumber Asli dan Alam Sekitar Sarawak. Statistik deskriptif, ujian korelasi dan ujian-t bebas dan analisis varians telah digunakan bagi menganalisakan data yang diperolehi.
Kajian menunjukkan kadar kesedaran yang tinggi di kalangan responden dan maklumat diperolehi dari sekolah manakala risalah perbandaran menerima kadar tindak balas yang paling rendah. Dari segi komitmen dan penyertaan, terdapat kadar penyertaan yang rendah di kalangan isi rumah terhadap pengasingan sisa. Kemudahan yang tidak mencukupi muncul sebagai kekangan tertinggi di kalangan semua kekangan lain yang disebut oleh responden
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seperti kesedaran, pengetahuan, minat, masa, tiada pengumpul dan kesulitan. Hasilnya juga mendedahkan penyediaan tong kitar semula sebagai keperluan yang paling tinggi untuk penyertaan di kalangan semua keperluan lain seperti penyediaan lebih banyak kempen, lebih banyak bengkel dan pameran, koleksi tetap, membuat insentif yang ada dan penguatkuasaan undang-undang dalam aktiviti pengasingan sisa. Hasil korelasi menunjukkan umur dan jantina adalah tidak signifikan terhadap amalan pengasingan sisa di Bandaraya Kuching Selatan. Hasil dari ujian-t bebas membuktikan perbezaan signifikan berkenaan pandangan mereka terhadap
perundangan manakala pandangan terhadap peruntukan kemudahan
infrastruktur dan insentif adalah tidak signifikan. Analisis varians menunjukkan perbezaan yang tidak ketara di peringkat isi rumah penyertaan dalam pengasingan sisa, berdasarkan status sosio-ekonomi mereka.
Penyediaan tong kitar semula adalah cara yang paling pasti untuk menggalakkan isi rumah dalam amalan pengasingan sisa. Juga, penggubalan dasar dan program untuk menggalakkan penyertaan isi rumah perlu ditumpukan ke arah meningkatkan tahap kesedaran mengenai alam sekitar dan pengasingan sisa, kepekaan terhadap alam sekitar dan menggalakkan kemudahan yang diperlukan. Pendidikan, promosi, publisiti, bengkel dan pameran secara teratur, akan menghasilkan prestasi yang baik mengikut masa.
Kata kunci: Sikap, Kritikal, Isi Rumah, Penglibatan, Pengasingan Sisa.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Dedication
i
Acknowledgements
ii
Abstract
iv
Abstrak
vi
Table of content
viii
List of Tables
xiii
List of Figures
xiv
Appendices
xv
List of Abbreviations
xvi
Publication
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CHAPTER 1:
INTRODUCTION
1.1
Background
1
1.2
Problem statement
4
1.3
Research questions
6
1.4
Research objectives
6
1.5
Research hypotheses
7
1.6
Scope of the study
8
1.7
Limitations of the study
8
1.8
Structure of the thesis
9
CHAPTER 2: 2.1
LITERATURE REVIEW
Introduction
10
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2.2
Solid wastes
10
2.3
Municipal solid waste (MSW)
11
2.4
Municipal solid waste management (MSWM)
12
2.4.1
Municipal solid waste management in Malaysia
14
2.4.2
Current Municipal solid waste management in Malaysia
17
2.4.3
Municipal solid waste management in Malaysia options
20
2.4.3.1 Reduce or Reuse
21
2.4.3.2 Recycling
22
2.4.3.3 Composting
25
2.4.3.4 Incineration
26
2.4.3.5 Landfilling or Disposal
27
2.4.4
Municipal solid waste management issues and the institutional context in Malaysia
2.4.5
2.5
28
Institutional framework of Municipal solid waste management in Malaysia
30
2.4.6
Municipal solid waste management policies and programs
32
2.4.7
Solid waste and public cleansing management Act 2007
33
Municipal solid waste segregation
34
2.5.1
Demographic and Attitudinal influences on waste segregation
35
2.5.1.1 Demographic influences
35
2.5.1.2 Perception and constraints
36
2.5.1.3 Motivating factors
40
2.5.2
Community participation
41
2.5.3
Government policies, public mistrust of authority and institutional
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2.5.4 2.6
framework
44
Current waste recycling and segregation behavior in Malaysia
47
Summary
CHAPTER 3:
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WASTE SEGREGATION EXPERIENCE IN KUCHING SOUTH CITY
3.1
3.2
Existing waste segregation practice
51
3.1.1
Buy back recycling centre
52
3.1.2
Takakura Home Composting Program
54
3.1.3
Recycling centers
55
3.1.4
School recycling program
55
Summary
CHAPTER 4:
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STUDY METHODOLOGY
4.1
Introduction
57
4.2
Study area
57
4.3
Research design
58
4.4
Study population
58
4.5
Instrument and procedure
59
4.5.1
Questionnaire
59
4.5.2
Face-to-face interview
62
4.6
Sample frame and sample size determination
63
4.7
Sampling techniques
64
4.8
Data processing and analysis
66
x
4.9
Pilot test
67
4.10
Summary
69
CHAPTER 5:
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
5.1
Introduction
70
5.2
Demographic profile of respondents
70
5.3
Waste separation awareness and acceptance
72
5.4
Waste segregation habits among respondents
75
5.5
Households’ constraints toward waste segregation in Kuching South City
77
5.6
Households’ requirements for participation in waste segregation in MBKS
82
5.7
Demographic influence towards waste segregation in Kuching South City
88
5.8
Relationship between waste segregators and non-waste segregators on their requirements for participation
5.9
5.10
89
Significant difference on household participation based on socioeconomic status in waste segregation
90
Summary
91
CHAPTER 5:
RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSION
6.1
Introduction
93
6.2
Recommendations
93
6.3
6.2.1
Stakeholders’ management
95
6.2.2
Management instruments
101
6.2.3
Institutional framework
104
Areas for further research
107
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6.4
Conclusions
108
REFERENCES
109
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LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1:
Waste composition in Malaysia from 1975 to 2005
16
Table 2.2:
Malaysia solid waste management targets toward Vision 2020
17
Table 2.3:
Waste treatment methods practice in Malaysia
19
Table 2.4:
Economic potentials estimate of some recyclables in Malaysia
24
Table 4.1:
Outline of data collection methods and objectives
63
Table 4.2:
Stratification of selected areas of study
65
Table 4.3:
Cronbach’s alpha
68
Table 4.4:
Reliability test
69
Table 5.1:
Demographic profile of respondents
71
Table 5.2:
Awareness response rate
73
Table 5.3:
Response cases for waste segregation awareness
73
Table 5.4:
Waste segregation participation among respondents
76
Table 5.5:
Response cases for waste segregation practice
77
Table 5.6:
Response cases for household constraints towards involvement
78
Table 5.7:
Response cases for household requirements for participation
82
Table 5.8:
Requirements for waste segregation practice according to response cases
84
Table 5.9:
Demographic influence on waste segregation
89
Table 5.10:
Differences between waste segregators and non-waste segregators on their requirements for participation
89
Table 5.11:
Test of Homogeneity of Variance
90
Table 5.12:
ANOVA test
90
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LIST OF FIGURES Figure 3.1:
MSW collected in Kuching South City
53
Figure 3.2:
Amount of recyclable items collected by Kuching South City Council
53
Figure 3.3:
Number of participants at MBKS Takakura Home Composting Workshop from 2011 to 2013
54
Figure 4.1:
Flow of activities for data collection
58
Figure 5.1:
Sources of waste segregation information according to response cases
74
Figure 5.2:
Method of waste segregation practice according to response cases
77
Figure 5.3:
Household constraints toward waste segregation according to response cases
Figure 6.1:
Figure 6.2:
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Proposed framework for household waste segregation for Household waste segregation
94
Recommended stakeholders for Household waste segregation
96
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APPENDICES Appendix A: Household questionnaire
128
Appendix B: Interview schedule
133
Appendix C: Transcript
136
Appendix D: List of NGOs and Private vendors in Kuching South City
140
Appendix E: Map
141
Appendix F: MBKS Point System
142
Appendix G: Point System for MBKS recycling Buy Back Centre
143
Appendix H: MBKS Programs
145
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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 3‘R’s:
Refuse, Reuse and Recycle
ABC:
Action Plan for Beautiful and Clean
CBO:
Community Based Organization
DEFRA:
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
EPU:
Economic Planning Unit
GHG:
Green House Gases
GTZ:
Gesellschaft fur Technische Zusammenarbeit
HW:
Household Waste
HWS:
Household Waste Segregation
LA:
Local Authority
MBKS:
Majlis Bandaraya Kuching Selatan
MHLG:
Ministry Of Housing and Local Government
MSW:
Municipal Solid Waste
MSWM:
Municipal Solid Waste Management
NGO:
Non-Governmental Organization
NREB:
Natural Resource and Environmental Board
NSP:
National Strategic Plan
NSWMD:
National Solid Waste Management Department
PAYT:
Pay As You Throw
PEPAS:
Promotion of Environmental Planning and Applied Studies
PMR:
Penilaian Menengah Rendah (Lower Secondary Assessment for form three students in Malaysia).
SANDEC:
Sanitation in Developing Countries
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SPM:
Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (National Examination taken by all fifth-year secondary school students in Malaysia).
STPM:
Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia (Pre-University Examination taken by students in Malaysia)
SW:
Solid Waste
SWM:
Solid Waste Management
SWMP:
Solid Waste Management Plan
SWPCM:
Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Act
UNEP:
United Nations Environment Programme
UNESCO:
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
UNIMAS:
Universiti Malaysia Sarawak
USEPA:
United States Environmental Protection Agency
USPS:
United States Postal Service
WM:
Waste management
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PUBLICATION Otitoju, T.A. & Seng, L. (2014). Municipal Solid Waste Management: Household Waste Segregation in Kuching South City, Sarawak, Malaysia. American Journal of Engineering Research, 3 (6): 82-91. e-ISSN: 2320-0847 p-ISSN: 2320-0936.
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Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION 1.1
BACKGROUND
What a person decides to purchase (an item), finds appropriate to wear (cloth), deems safe to eat (food), and discards into the trash bin are largely determined by culture (Gregson et al., 2010). Individuals and societies have demonstrated wide differences in these choices throughout time, but share the tendency to ignore materials and place them out of sight once they are considered waste (Douglas, 1966; Lynch, 1990). As income levels rise across the globe, consumption levels are escalating in most countries. This is leading to a proliferation of waste disposed of in landfills, incinerators and open dumps (Uiterkamp et al., 2011). Human activities create waste, and the ways that those wastes are handled, stored, collected, and disposed of can pose risks to the environment and public health.
The increase in generation of municipal solid waste is inevitable, however, it was not important in former times but became an issue as soon as people started to settle in communities. Ever since, municipal solid waste management (MSWM) has been of great concern to municipal authorities worldwide. In the middle ages, badly managed waste was responsible for millions of deaths in Europe. In the 18th century, inappropriate waste management was the cause of the outbreak of diseases like the plague and cholera which claimed more than 380,000 lives in Hamburg (Bilitewski et al., 1994). Above all odds, the management of municipal solid wastes in an effective manner has been scientifically approved and needed for sustainable urbanization and development. If the population and resources are not accompanied by the development of innovative approaches to enhance community participation and government support for environmental management, it may lead
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to deterioration of environmental quality and social conflicts (GTZ, 1988). Furthermore, the lack of effective and efficient municipal solid waste management can have a negative impact on the environment which may extend wider than just the geographical boundary of the community itself (Foo, 1997).
From an environmental standpoint, source prevention and recycling are preferred over treatment and disposal (Bringer, 1992). According to Figueroa (1998), segregation at the household level is one of the measures for reducing the amounts of discarded materials at the source as sorted waste makes it easier for items to be subsequently reused, recycled or compost either for the same or a different purpose. Thus, segregation of waste is essential to improve wastes processing performance. It is important to note that increasing segregation on its own does not provide the complete solution. The other “downstream” components of the municipal solid waste management system (reliable collection of recyclables, recycling capacities) must also be in place and functional so that long-term incentives for the waste generators can be assured.
The feasibility of household‟s habit towards waste segregation will depend significantly on their awareness and understanding of the benefit of segregation for their immediate environment. Segregation practices should be given greater emphasis by means of publicity and awareness campaigns with housing associations and non-governmental organisations. Furthermore, the level of commitment to any ongoing waste segregation behavior in a certain community will certainly be increased if people are involved, their views and felt needs are emphasised. A felt need is a necessary prerequisite for a community based segregation systems. If municipal solid waste management is not a „felt need‟, this will have
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consequences for their participation in the service. An individual‟s behavior change tends to occur when the individual is aware of the problem or need that gives the individual an initial reason or incentive to follow a particular course of action.
In view of the aforementioned, this study explores the awareness, limitations and motivations of households on waste segregation in Kuching South City. Drawing upon these themes, this study would also suggest ways that the concluding strategies could be used by local authorities, government agencies and other organisations seeking to increase the diversion of waste from disposal and reduce the amount of the material considered wastes.
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1.2
PROBLEM STATEMENT
An interview with representative from Natural Resource and Environmental Board (NREB) revealed that landfill still remains the most common waste treatment method in Kuching, whereby more than 70 percent of the generated household wastes are disposed using this method. This problem of disposal to landfill is usually compounded by trends in consumption, production patterns, continuing urbanisation of the world and most importantly the attitude and involvement of communities towards municipal solid waste management (MSWM). Incineration, another common waste treatment method, has been criticised as unsuitable, due to air pollution problems and high construction and operational costs (Sandhu and Tilman, 1998). As Malaysia falls within the tropical rainforest region with high humidity, the municipal solid waste has very high moisture content. Burning such waste in an incinerator will consume much more energy than waste from drier region.
In view of this, recycling and composting are much more an effective alternative to landfill and incineration. Recycling and composting helps to direct and divert materials from the waste system so that they may be re-used and turned into another material. The benefits of recycling are in many forms, such as reduction of environmental damage, energy saving, resources conservation, saves collection costs, disposal costs (Foo, 1997), and can lead to gainful employment (Gupta and Kaseva, 1996).
Waste segregation, another method for managing municipal solid waste, to enhance recycling and minimising waste (Chung and Poon, 1999). However, unless the wastes are separated into well-defined materials, the environmental potential of recycling strategies cannot be fully realised (Krook et al., 2007; Rejinders, 2000). Although, waste segregation at source has been
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