published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

published_or_final_version / abstract / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration

Few environmental problems exemplify market-failure better than municipal solid waste does: A direct by-product of economic production and consumption, its collection and disposal (still mainly at landfills, in many countries) incurs high capital and running costs, creates environmental and health impacts and, in European Union countries, risks incurring heavy financial penalties. The main remedy proposed in environmental economics is a marginal tax on the disposal of mixed household waste, intended to incentivise its reduction and separation for recycling. But taxes are politically unpopular, expensive to administer and generate variable response − sometimes stimulating illegal disposal of waste instead of its reduction. Taxes also risk undermining the moral benefits people seem to enjoy from cooperating voluntarily. Inducing voluntary cooperation could cultivate moral motives and generate cooperation, but this has received less attention in environmental economics to date. The aim of this thesis is to examine the determinants of cooperation by households in waste management activities, investigating the role that government policy can play in stimulating it, and focusing on the role of price incentives and of scheme promotion. Chapter 1 introduces the issue of waste management as an economic problem, and the role of household cooperation as a promising solution. Chapter 2 surveys the literature on the topic of what determines household cooperation in waste management and identifies the key gaps which the thesis seeks to address. Three manuscripts are presented in Chapters 3, 4 and 5, each of which examines a distinct question on the determinants of household cooperation in waste management. Chapter 6 concludes with a synthesis of main findings, key policy cues and suggestions for future research. The first manuscript titled “Voluntary recycling despite financial disincentives” employs a unique merged panel data set (n = 4,644) using data from 58 localities over 86 weeks to assess the determinants of participation in a voluntary waste separation scheme in Malta. The two manuscripts that follow are based on a nationally-representative telephone survey (n = 1,037), containing two embedded experiments, and conducted during 2013, in Malta, for this thesis. Manuscript 2 titled “Partisanship, priming and participation in voluntary recycling” tests whether party identification, as distinct from environmental or political ideology, can act as a determinant of participation in a recycling scheme, particularly if the scheme is promoted in a manner that associates it with the party in government. Manuscript 3 titled “The impact of a Pay as You Throw tax level and label on home-composting” examines the potential of a Pay As You Throw (PAYT) tax, and of its labelling, to induce substitution of biodegradable waste away from mixed kerb-side disposal and into home-composting. It also examines the prospect that this type of intervention stimulates illegal disposal. Synthesising the results of three studies, the thesis finds that: 1. The type of households most likely to cooperate in waste management schemes are multiple-person ones facing lower constraints of space and time, where members hold pro-environmental preferences. This confirms findings of similar studies in other contexts, helps forecast uptake and may guide the design and promotion of schemes to target low-lying fruit and tackle relevant constraints. 2. Driven mainly by moral motives, households are willing to recycle voluntarily even if it is less convenientc e than disposing of un-separated waste, and they are willing to pay for it. This is a useful finding for municipalities with low budgets, unable to institute taxes or fearing illegal disposal as a reaction. 3. Political preferences are relevant to recycling: Where negative sentiment towards the party in government exists, (even subtle cues) promoting the scheme as a government scheme and associating it with the party in government can suppress participation. Decoupling political communication from scheme promotion can release more households into cooperative effort. 4. Responses to waste taxes are not just a matter of price level but also of tax salience: A tax label can significantly increase waste separation and home-composting but it also boosts higher illegal-disposal intent. The way a fee is labelled therefore itself forms part of the intervention tool-kit, meriting pre-testing and capable of manipulation. These findings make a marginal contribution to gaps in the environmental economics literature by integrating insights from psychology. They are also intended to offer simple and applicable ideas to policy-makers and to scheme-operators aiming to increase household cooperation in waste management.

Ph.D. (Economics) / Street waste pickers are a visible group of people trying to survive under poor socio-economic conditions. They participate in the informal economy as self-employed entrepreneurs. Despite the income-earning opportunity generated by the waste that is freely available, their social and economic conditions remain poor. This study is the first national study to investigate the social and economic conditions of the street waste pickers in South Africa. The national study covers thirteen major cities in South Africa and uses a mixed method research design. A literature review on informal waste picking activities and the participation of the poor in these activities provide a basis from which the socio-economic conditions of the street waste pickers could be analysed. A theoretical overview of poverty theories, the unemployment problem, and the characteristics of the informal economy and informal recycling activities help to contextualise the street waste pickers in terms of the link that exists between poverty, unemployment, and street waste picking activities as a marginal form of informal self-employment. With this as background, qualitative and quantitative data on the socio-economic conditions of the street waste pickers was collected from the street waste pickers themselves and from the buy-back centres with whom they interact on an almost daily basis.

This research report submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Environmental Science. Johannesburg, 2016 Research work and course work. Johannesburg, 2016. / The unprecedented population growth, urbanisation and accelerating living standards, significant amounts of solid waste have accumulated all over the world. These changes, therefore, left most municipalities in African countries grappling to find viable solutions to their waste management problems (Özbay 2015). Indeed, studies have shown that the estimated annual growth rate of MSW is 3.2% to 4.5% for developed countries and 2% to 3% for developing countries (Özbay 2015). Notably, continuous increase in accumulation of solid wastes poses risks to not only human health but to the ecological environment (Al-Khatib, Kontogianni, Abu Nabaa, Alshami & Al-Sari 2015; Menikpura, Gheewala & Bonnet 2012). Improper waste management stems from the poor implementations of policies and regulations, to identify the most sustainable approaches to dealing with waste as to meet environmental and socio-economic aspirations, to address waste management efficiently. The objectives of this research are as follow:  Locate, consolidate and organise secondary data that is relevant to understanding the specific waste management situation of Benoni, Ekurhuleni.  Identify the importance of Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM).  Analyse these data and determine how it can be utilised in the case of Benoni.  Identify and suggest the best strategy implement an effective MSWM system, and  Discuss the difficulties and challenges faced by Benoni and Ekurhuleni at large, due to ineffective and inefficient MSWM. The case study area Benoni is a mere example to highlight waste management burdens and challenges, which might be characteristic of most African towns. This research seeks to understand the solid waste collection and proper disposal in informal areas of Benoni and the environmental impacts thereof. In particular, the research assumes that there is yet to be implemented a more rigid and structured approach to waste management in the area which justifies and necessitates the need for research aimed at shedding light on how modern waste management systems can be adapted to the case of the informal settlements in this area. Proper waste management implementation will benefit both the specific community in informal parts of Benoni as well as the global practice of waste management. This study used the qualitative method to describe, explore, and discover phenomena related to MSWM in Benoni (Creswell, 2003). Qualitative research is typically interpretive, with the researcher using critical analysis for the interpretation of data collected (Shenton & Hay-Gibson, 2009). The quantitative research uses hypotheses in determining the form, quantity, and scope of data to be collected (Morse & Richards 2002). In doing so, the researcher pre-empts alternative ways through which the study questions may be addressed. On the other hand, qualitative investigations are not pre-emptive. In this study of MSWM in Benoni, the form, quantity, and scope of inquiry hinged upon the research questions, the study purpose, and goals, as well as from the data collected (Morse & Richards 2002). 3 Benoni has reached the dilemma in which adverse health and environmental impacts of ineffective waste management are felt, while the numbers of landfill sites have been decreasing with no planning in evidence for establishing new ones. Because of these, improvements to Benoni's MSWM will entail the cooperation of all tiers of Government as well as industry and the commercial sectors. The EMM will have to restructure the recycling industry with the support of waste management legislation. An option that EMM has is to contemplate upon the outsourcing of the management of sanitary landfill sites to public-private partnerships, based on study findings that these discharges are better managed in South Africa (Naidoo 2009). In the case of Benoni, albeit the EMM has sufficient resources to manage waste effectively, there were numerous gaps related to the challenges that exist within the municipality's waste management sector. For instance, household wastes are not timely collected, and no notices are given when collection dates are changed (Tembon 2012). Apart from these, Benoni has an underdeveloped recycling system perhaps largely because the EMM itself has no comprehensive municipal recycling program and recycling facilities. Somehow, this contradicts the impression being given by providers that they have access to all the necessary resources needed for them to be effective in their work. This research will discuss an approach to strengthening the capacity to solve the problems that come with MSWM, along with investigating whether modern waste management practices are be present implemented such as; waste diversion from landfills, as well as shifting from incinerators and using unlined landfill sites to more sustainable methods. Based on the combined experiences in the three cases, some recommendations may stand in Benoni Ekurhuleni. First, every member of the community should be empowered with education and skills on waste management to increase their levels of participation in waste sorting at the source of generation. Public involvement will encourage effective recycling that ultimately generates income. This will be particularly useful to Benoni's squatter communities. Benoni has to look into the possibility of providing skills to informal settlers so that they can construct well-planned houses for themselves. With assistance from the national government, the EMM can decide whether this type of housing can be subsidised. Third, it is essential that EMM involves stakeholders from the different sectors of the municipal area in the planning and implementation of waste management strategies. Group leaders from various communities as well as social groups such as church communities should be invited to participate because they are crucial links between the council and the community. / LG2017

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Johannesburg, September 2016. / The purpose of this research was to investigate the concepts of social and environmental justice in the context of solid waste management in Kinshasa and the critical factors accounting for injustice in this context. The investigation followed an examination of the relevant theoretical framework(s) and mechanisms that would facilitate the attainment of social and environmental justice in the city of Kinshasa, DRC. It was argued that social justice and environmental justice are a global challenge, and that efforts to address these challenges are usually biased towards employing eurocentric frameworks that are unfit to deal with the reality of environmental problems in a developing country scenario. The use of eurocentric urban development and planning approaches, which in most cases are outdated, have significantly propagated issues of spatial inequality in the distribution of solid waste burdens and have contributed to worsening justice concerns in many cities in developing countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. It has been illustrated in this study that social justice and environmental justice in the context of solid waste management must be seen as intrinsically connected, as both concepts emphasise the need for empirical understandings grounded in local contexts. Social and environmental justices play fundamental roles in the theoretical construction of principles that can contribute to a sustainable community, thereby ensuring that the rights and needs of individuals in a society are met. In the context of solid waste, the concepts of social justice and environmental justice are compelling because of their focus on ensuring equal service delivery in solid waste collection and disposal, while simultaneously redressing previous imbalances. Walker (2009) argues that the principles of environmental and social justice and sustainable development are more generally in their infancy in sub-Saharan Africa, and few implementing agencies and practitioners have a clear understanding of how to translate these global principles into practice. It is not surprising, therefore, that unresolved issues around sustainable development and environmental justice have emerged in a period during which implementation and the real implications of following a justice pathway have overwhelmed many urban managers in sub-Saharan African cities (Patel 2009). Using both qualitative and quantitative research methods together with system thinking and system dynamics modelling principles as integral frameworks in understanding the complexity in solid waste management, it has been demonstrated that solid waste management in Kinshasa, like in many Congolese cities, is a duty entrusted to publicly-funded municipal authorities. There is a clear divide and evidence in the manner by which solid waste is managed between the rich and poor neighborhoods of the city. The rich neighbourhoods seem to enjoy well-formulated systems of service delivery, in contrast with high-density areas, where almost 80% of the population in Kinshasa resides. This state of affairs is a result of inequalities that exist between the more powerful wealthy class and the disempowered poor people of the urban society in Kinshasa. Furthermore, cultural theory paradigms and conceptual System Dynamics (SD) modelling principles were employed to establish how the stakeholders in the form of four social solidarities (fatalist, hierarchist, individualist and egalitarian) influence solid waste management in the city and how they interact with each other dynamically. Based on this inter-linkage, interaction and causal feedback relations, a politico-cultural mechanism was evolved to enable changes to social and environmental injustices in solid waste management in Kinshasa, DRC. It was argued that a cultural theory inspired participative and collaborative mechanisms could result in the incorporation of a majority of the stakeholders in the decision making and implementation of solid waste management, adoption of technologies and innovative ways of managing solid waste, which could prompt social and environmental justice in solid waste management in Kinshasa, DRC. The findings of the study have both theoretical and practical implications. They provide a thorough discourse on environmental justice in solid waste management and how cultural theory paradigm can offer a new dimension to the theories behind stakeholder’s participation in local development and management matters, particularly with respect to social and environmental injustice in solid waste management in sub-Saharan African cities. They also explicitly show how the various social solidarities could work dynamically in an integrated manner, and enable development of policy intervention mechanisms to resolve the solid waste management challenges and attain social and environmental justice through their effective collaboration, and participation, although this may be through compromises and tradeoffs in place of consensus. This paradigm could assist government agencies like municipalities to develop appropriate policy interventions and implementation strategies to resolve solid waste management challenges in sub-Saharan African cities in general and in the Democratic Republic of Congo in particular. Keywords: Cultural theory, environmental justice, social justice, solid waste management, urban environmental problem, Kinshasa / LG2017

A landfill is in a reserved space on land used for the disposal of refuse by utilizing the principles of engineering to confine the refuse to the smallest practical area to prevent the creation of nuisances to public health or safety (Andersen et al. 1967). However, because landfills are open to the atmosphere, rainfall can saturate them, resulting in a liquid called leachate. Leachate generated within the landfill contains suspended solids, soluble components of the waste and by-products from the degradation of the waste by various micro-organisms. Treatment of leachate is an emerging area of need. In this manuscript the main purpose is to investigate a laboratory scale batch reactor that is able to detoxify and treat leachate by using an advanced oxidation process (i.e. TiO2). Based on the results obtained from this ground breaking research, it appears that the process investigate has the potential to radically change the way landfill leachate is treated. Scale up may provide direction that can be used to improve the efficiency of the different stages of toxicity of leachate during the entire life of a landfill. / by Andrâe McBarnette. / Thesis (M.S.C.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Since the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) began requiring landfills to implement a leachate collection system in 1991, the proper disposal of leachate has become a growing concern. The potential toxicity of landfill leachate will contaminate groundwater and soil if not managed properly. Research has been made in efforts to manage leachate in a cost-effective, single treatment process. Photocatalytic oxidation is an advanced oxidation process (AOP) which has shown ability to reduce toxicity of an array of leachate constituents including organics, inorganics and heavy metals. The purpose of this manuscript is to scale up the batch scale study of TiO2 photocatalytic degradation of leachate utilizing a pilot scale falling film reactor. In this research project, the use of UV/TiO2 for the removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonia, alkalinity and color will be studied in order to optimize catalyst dosage, determine pH effects and reaction kinetics and develop preliminary cost estimates. / by Frank Youngman. / Thesis (M.S.C.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2013. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.