Factors influencing a good solid waste management

• Author: Adela Cafuli
• Pages: 155-159

155

Vol. 4 No.3

January, 2019

Balkan Journal of Interdisciplinary Research

IIPCCL Publishing, Graz-Austria

ISSN 2410-759X

Acces online at www.iipccl.org

Factors infl uencing a good solid waste management

Adela Cafuli

Introduction

Waste is an environmental issue of global interest. The economic development and

urbanization have caused an increase in the amount of waste generated, infl uencing

in this way the decision makers to manage them in a proper way, by contributing in

the sustainable development of a country.

A proper waste management, seems to contribute in the three pillars of the

sustainability, such as economy, environment and society. The most important thing

is to protect the environment and people’s health. An improper waste management

leads mainly to the pollution that harms the health. Therefore managing the huge

amount of waste generated daily is a challenge for all economic agents. Solid waste

management has a long and convoluted history (Nathanson, 2015). With the rapid

economic growth and urbanization, their management has been of a great concern

and importance for a lot of countries, especially for the developing one.

The responsibility of managing waste is mainly of local governments. In developing

countries, the municipalities have been in charge of providing solid waste management

services (Al-Khatib et al., 2009). The most used ways for managing waste, such as

dumping and burning have had negative impacts in the environment and health

(Mwanthi and Nyabola, 1997; Goe , 1998; Alavi Moghadam et al., 2009; Narayana,

2009; Al-Khatib et al., 2015; Hilburn, 2015).

The issue is not only to fi nd the best way to manage them but also to fi nd the right

factors that can infl uence to achieve the sustainability. Surely, that legislation has its

contribution to solid waste management, but it cannot help if it is not combined with

other factors, such as public awareness, funds, investments in infrastructure, etc.

This paper aims to analyze factors infl uencing in a direct and indirect way in waste

management, especially of solid waste in developing countries, including Albania.

These include mainly economic, social, cultural, political and technological factors.

The analyze is not focused only on the description of these factors, but also in their

potentials to infl uence as well as to fi nd the best ways to improve or raise them in order

to achieve the best solid waste management as well as the sustainable development.

1. Factors infl uencing solid waste management situation in developing countries

Waste disposal in developing countries is still largely uncontrolled and a great part of

them do not have an integrated waste management system. Solid waste management

still remains a serious problem, even though, they have made e orts toward solid

waste management. It is typical that developing countries lack the fi nancial, human,

infrastructural, and related resources to develop e ective solid waste management

strategy.

Developing countries have some common characteristics that infl uence waste amount

generated and their management:

The increase of population and migration from rural to urban areas, characteristic