Introduction and Design of the Study

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION AND DESIGN OF THE STUDY

1.1 INTRODUCTION

Early man lived in total harmony with nature they used what was available in
nature and used it with care. Over the years change in technology and scientific invitation
has led to the creation of artificial material which is not bio-degradable. This has led to
solid wastes that are harmful to the environment and human being. Solid waste is a
material that does not represent any economic value to its owner or society. Solid waste
management is becoming a major health and environmental concern in urban,
semi- urban and even rural areas of many developing countries. Change in the life style of
the people like food habit, standard of living and earning income of people creates more
solid waste in India. Waste disposal and solid waste management is a major problem in
urban areas because of high population. Now a day, transportation facilities and good
connective has lead to the migration of people from rural to urban areas leading to change
in their life style, which causes the problem of solid waste to rural areas also.

In earlier days, municipal wastes, comprised mainly of biodegradable matter, did

not create much problem to the community. The quantity of wastes generated has been
either recycled or reused directly as manure or within the assimilative capacity of the
local environment. The biodegradable wastes of the urban centers are accepted by the
suburban rural areas for composting in the agricultural field. With increasing content of
plastics and non-biodegradable packaging materials, municipal wastes became
increasingly unacceptable to cultivators. As a result, the excessive accumulation of solid
wastes in the environment poses serious threat. Similar scenario is now emerging in all
areas as well due to the urban-rural continuum, now it deals with waste as a major
challenge (Muhammed Salisu Khalil et al. 2017).

The recycling of solid wastes such as aluminum cans, glass bottles, and
newspapers has been of concern for a number of years. As environmental issues have
become more important to individuals, the interest in recycling has increased among state
and district governments (Sitifadzilah Ayob 2016). Unfortunately, although many cities

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have made recycling easier, compliance is still relatively low. Although recycling
behaviour and separation intention of solid waste management may not be provided here
unlike other foreign countries. The intent of the study is to understand the antecedents of
recycling behaviour and the relationships between values and attitudes as separation
intention and separating of wastes about their recycling behaviour. A specific interest is
to understand how personal values and the value orientation of individual collectivism
relate to these behaviours. Attitudes that relate to the importance of recycling for society
and the inconvenience of recycling have to be measured for the individuals in
households.

Recycling of solid waste management benefits the environment in two ways, by

minimizing waste and by conserving natural resources. Thus, it is one of those
pro-environmental behaviour which ‘consciously seeks to minimize the negative impact
of one’s actions on the natural and built world’ (Kollmuss and Agyeman, 2002:240).
The ‘waste problem’ demands a solution on a local, national and international level.
Technological advances are one part of the equation and the other part is human
behaviour and decision-making related to recycling. The decision to recycle is a complex
one since many factors have to be taken into account. Past research studies has identified
the convenience of the recycling behaviour, related recycling attitude, awareness of the
consequences of recycling, environmental knowledge and education, separation intention
and area of residence, perceived behavioural control towards recycling, amongst the
many factors which influence solid waste management decisions of households.

1.2 WASTE

A waste is sometimes referred to as refuse, garbage, or junk, is an item that is

undesirable or pointless. Any of the numerous undesirable compounds released from
living things are considered waste in biology. Examples include urea and perspiration
(Business Dictionary, 2019). Consumption rates are rising as the world gets more urban
and developed. The significant growth in the volume of solid waste created is an
inevitable result of increased consumption. Conditions for solid waste management
(SWM) in the developing world today are frequently very bad and resemble those in the

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developed world from a few generations ago. It is increasingly recognized that poor Solid
Waste Management (SWM) practices have an impact on both the natural and human
ecosystems.

Due to increasing tons of both industrial and household solid waste generated
every year, recycling and reuse of waste for other important purposes have become very
vital as this is in line with the proposal set-up by European Union (Lazarova, 2001).
Recycling is regarded as one of the various strategies to reduce the renascence of solid
waste which is a key environmental problem. In order to achieve an effective waste
recycling, individuals and communities at large has a vital role to play in achieving this
goal on the areas of expressing concerns toward environmental sustainability which will
prompt their willingness to recycle waste.

1.3 SOLID WASTE IN INDIA

People are aware that waste may be dangerous and needs safe disposal. Industrial
waste, sewage and agricultural waste pollute water, soil and air. It can also be dangerous
to human beings and environment. In recent years the exponential population growth
with high density of urban areas diverse culture and changing of food and life styles
which has created the unsolved problems in the Indian society. Consequently, the
municipality has been facing so many challenges related to collection, treatment and
management of solid waste.

In the current environment, the problems with solid waste management in the
context of India have been identified, and a solution has been derived. One of the main
socially unacceptable, citizen's attitude, and poor evaluation, inadequate potential
strategies, unorganized sector of waste, unplanned fiscal, and bad implementation of
government policies has been the unsorted solid waste at source.

With a total population of almost 1210 million, the country's urban population is
over 377 million, or 31.16 per cent of the total (Census of India 2011 GOI, 2011).
7.2 million tonnes of hazardous waste, an additional square kilometre of landfill space
each year, and `1600 cores for each step in treating and discarding these pollutants.
In addition, businesses annually discard 150 million tonnes of high volume, low hazard
garbage, the majority of which is thrown in the open low lying land areas.

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1.4 HOUSEHOLD WASTE

Households produce disposable materials known as home waste, domestic waste,

or residential trash. Both hazardous and non-hazardous waste might be included in this
garbage. Food scraps, paper, bottles, and other items that can be recycled or composted
are examples of non-hazardous waste. Batteries and household cleaners are a couple of
examples of hazardous garbage. Hazardous waste handling must be done safely to
guarantee that it is disposed of appropriately and does not hurt anyone (Business
Dictionary, 2019).

Solid waste is defined as undesirable or pointless solid items produced by human

activity in residential, commercial, or industrial areas. It can be divided into three
categories. According to its:

 Origin (domestic, industrial, commercial, construction or institutional)

 Contents (organic material, glass, metal, plastic paper etc)
 Hazard potential (toxic, non-toxin, flammable, radioactive, infectious etc).

The negative effects on the environment and human health are lessened or
completely eliminated via solid waste management. The town uses a variety of
procedures to handle garbage in an efficient manner. These include keeping track off,
gathering, moving, processing, recycling, and discarding. The amount of garbage
produced varies mostly as a result of various lifestyles, which are inversely correlated
with the socioeconomic status of the metropolitan population.

Waste generation rates are increasing globally. The cities in the world produced
2.01 billion tonnes of solid trash in 2016, or 0.74 kilos per person each day. The annual
trash generation is anticipated to rise by 70 per cent from 2016 levels to 3.40 billion
tonnes in 2050 due to growing urbanization and population growth. Residents of
developing countries, particularly the urban poor, are more negatively impacted by
unsustainable garbage management than citizens of developed countries. Over 90 per cent of
rubbish is frequently dumped in uncontrolled dumps or burned outdoors in low-income
countries. These actions have negative effects on the environment, public safety, and
health. A breeding place for disease-carrying organisms, poorly handled garbage
produces methane, which fuels climate change, and can even encourage urban violence.

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For the construction of sustainable and habitable communities, waste management is
crucial, yet it is still difficult in many developing nations and cities. The cost of efficient
garbage management typically accounts for 20 to 50 per cent of municipal budgets.
Integrated systems that are effective, sustainable, and socially supported are needed to
operate this crucial municipal service (Sitifadzilah Ayob, 2016).

Being with a high population density, Coimbatore will undoubtedly be impacted

by even a small mishandling of solid waste. It will have wide-ranging effects on the
urban population that are multifaceted. Regrettably, SWM is a topic that policymakers
largely ignore and give little thought to. This issue, which needs to be given top priority
but is now receiving very little attention, has not been properly studied. The analysis of
all SWM operational areas in Coimbatore, including waste collection, storage, transportation,
and disposal, is attempted to some extent. Additionally assessed are the public's
awareness levels. The aforementioned factors are investigated using the proper statistical
methods.

1.5 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

In existing scenario solid waste management is one of the major challenges faced
by countries all over the world, especially in the developing countries like India.
This problem is due to urbanization, industrialization and poor planning with lack of
adequate resources which has led to huge amount of solid waste generation. Solid waste
generation is a dynamic process that was caused by the increase in population along with
increase need in the life style of the people. Therefore, need of the house in society steps
forward the management of solid wastes. Solid waste creates very serious issue to the
environment and socio - economic related problems affecting the society. So, an attempt
has been made in this study to know about households’ creating awareness to inculcating
environmental knowledge and education, attitude, perceived behavioural control related
to the separation intention and separating practice on solid waste management and their
recycling behaviour.

Solid waste generation from the households would cause many problems in day
today activity to get rid of wastes. It is important to have a good solid waste management
practices in the household level to avoid problems such as vector control and disease

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control. There are various major environmental risk factors associated with poor solid
waste management and recycling behaviour which cause pollution to the environment.
Furthermore, we need to access influence of knowledge in household practices of solid
waste management. Analysis of current household practices of solid waste disposal and
recycling behaviour helps to improve the solid waste management in the community and
to bring more awareness, knowledge and environmental education for the households
regarding recycling behaviour. Thus, the study attempts to ensure the following questions:

1. To what extent environmental knowledge and environmental education is

determined about the recycling behaviour of solid waste management among
households?

2. How far it affects separation intention of households on solid waste and recycling
behaviour?

3. To find out the separation behaviour on solid waste and recycling based on
attitude and intention of solid waste separation.

1.6 OBJECTIVES

The main purpose of this study is to determine solid waste management regarding
various issues related to environment. In this research an attempt has been made to examine
the recycling and separation behaviour of solid waste management among households.

1. To identify the level of awareness of urban households on solid waste generation

and to analyze the extent of their environmental education and environmental
knowledge of solid waste management.

2. To find out the present practice of solid waste management mechanism among
urban households in Coimbatore city.

3. To determine the factors influencing solid waste separation intention and

separation behaviour of urban households.

4. To examine the impact of factors determined on separation behavior of urban

households and to establish the relationship between constructs (Environment
education, attitude, perceived behaviour control, environmental knowledge,
separation intention and behaviour inter se by proposing structural equation model).
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1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

Solid waste generated from the day to day human activity has become one of the
most dangerous environmental problems which lead to pollution and health hazards.
The main drawback of the problem associated with the solid waste management among
households in today’s society is becoming diverse in nature, due to development of urban
areas. As a consequence, solid waste should be managed and there should be a proper
maintenance of solid wastes and their recycling, behavioural changes which contribute to
improvement of human health, and hence, it increases environmental benefits.
The present study deals with households or individuals in Coimbatore and concentrates
on their attitude, knowledge, perceived behavioural control and environmental education,
separation intention and behaviour based on recycling of solid wastes among individual
households.

1.8 NEED OF THE STUDY

Coimbatore is becoming a centre for education and assumed to have a developed

modern society with comparatively unique social development indices than other
districts. The fast changing lifestyles of the people make solid waste composition
extremely vulnerable. Though ranked as a top based on many indices, its solid waste
efforts are below the accepted standards. There is an urban – rural continuum with even
rural areas are displaying urban characteristics. The efforts of the government for an
organized municipal solid waste management are not hitting the target because of lack of
commitment of the people, carelessly throwing away the waste to streets and wastes
bodies. Among the households in Coimbatore the solid waste sanitation level is high and
environment sanitation level is low. The government is also trying hard to resolve the
problem with the weak resources and technical support. The study attempts in evaluating
the level of awareness among households regarding different aspects of solid waste
practices and their management. Hence, the responses are collected among the different
areas of households and individual opinions that have been undertaken for the study.

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1.9 CHAPTER SCHEME

CHAPTER-I

It deals with introduction of the study, statement of the problem, objectives of the
study, scope of the study, need of the study and chapter scheme.

CHAPTER-II

It deals with review of literature collected from previous studies, research gab,
theoretical framework and hypotheses.

CHAPTER-III

It deals with research approach, instrument development, research validations and

statistical tools used.

CHAPTER-IV

It deals with analysis and interpretations of data, with appropriate statistical tools.

CHAPTER-V

It includes the findings, suggestion, scope for future research, limitations of the
study and conclusion.

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2. SitiFadzilah Ayob and Low Sheau-Ting (2016) “Key Determinants of Waste

Separation Intention among Students on Campus” MATEC Web of Conferences 66,
00066 (2016) DOI: 10.1051/matecconf/20166 600066 IBCC 2016.

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