Self-reported Household Waste Recycling
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Background The recycling and reuse of household waste are linked with daily activities in a household and typically depend on sociodemographic variables. This study set out to examine and investigate the degree of awareness about recycling and reuse of waste and self-reported recycling of household waste and segregation practices, as well as the factors that affect the behavior for households living that live in Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia.
Methods: We employed a cross-sectional study utilizing the multi-stage random sampling of 279 households and a researcher-structured, online questionnaire in English and Arabic. The data were analysed with SPSS Version 20. Descriptive statistics were used to define the level of awareness/practices. Inferential statistics was employed to define the aspects of correlation. Findings: The study found women, younger people of both genders, the postgraduate or university level of education and urban dwellers were strongly associated with the self-reported segregation of household waste as well as recycling methods at the point of origin.
Paper, plastics, glass textiles, food waste as well as electronic garbage were found as the top prevalent kinds that household garbage is. Lack of knowledge in the field, awareness, the need for recycled products and laws that promote recycling was cited as contributing to women’s inability to recycle. Television, social media and educational institutions were found as sources of information about recycling and segregation of waste.
- Introduction
Globally the, municipal solid waste (MSW) production was estimated at 2.01 billion tonnes (MT) at the end of 2016, and was projected to rise 70% by 2050 due to the increasing expansion of the population, economic development and urbanization 1 , 2 ]. The content of this garbage varies greatly from one country to the next and is mostly influenced by lifestyle and economic and social conditions 3 Population growth as well as consumer habits in each country 4 ]. It is mostly composed of plastic, paper, and organic waste 1 ]. In the developing world, more than 90 percent of waste is dumped in unregulated landfills or burnt in open flames, creating serious health risks for humans as well as the environment 5 , 6 ].In the cases of countries belonging to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) The total amount of of solid waste has been estimated range between 95 and 100 million tonnes 7 ].
Alongside rapid industrialization and economic growth and rapid urbanization, fast urbanization also took place within Saudi Arabia, which resulted in the production of huge amounts of garbage in urban and rural areas, which causes an increase in the amount of waste and pollution. In total, the Kingdom is home to 15 million tonnes of MSW every year, and an average daily volume of 1.4 kg per person and the figure is predicted to rise to 30 MT every year by 2033. an estimated waste per capita production of 2.9 kg/day. 10 ].
The present MSW administration system used in the KSA is very simple that is: collection, disposal in landfills, and then burning. This is a way of reducing emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) emits (CO 2 , CH 4 , and N 2 (O) are the fourth-highest pollutants following the level of fossil fuels O) are the fourth highest polluters after fossil fuels.Recognizing the dangers of illegal dumps In recognition of the dangers associated with uncontrolled dumping, the Saudi government enacted new regulations that will provide an integrated approach to the disposal of municipal waste, through the implementation of new techniques for managing waste.
These regulations were designed to dramatically increase recycling and reuse, ranging from 15 percent to 40 percent. These measures were also aimed to bring business opportunities 10 and improve environmental sustainability and increase sustainability for the environment. 13 ].
