The Development of the Solid Waste Management Model with Participation of Local Government Organizations and Communities in Wiangkalong Subdistrict, Chiang Rai Province

Abstract

This study aimed to (1) explore the solid waste management information of the communities, and (2) develop a solid waste management model with the participation of local government organizations (LGOs) and communities in Wiang Ka Long subdistrict, Wiang Pa Pao district, Chiang Rai province.

          The action research involved collecting data/information on the solid waste management of communities in the subdistrict from a sample of 400 household representatives, and developing the solid waste management model in a workshop, with the collected information as input, for a sample of 40 LGO officials and community representatives. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, frequencies, percentages, means and standard deviations. The tools used in the research were (1) a questionnaire on solid waste management of communities and (2) a satisfaction assessment form before/after developing and using the solid waste management model. The content of the questionnaire was verified by three experts and its accuracy was between 0.71 and 0.91.         

              The results showed that: (1) The people separated the solid waste before throwing it away and of all the waste generated in a week, 33% was organic waste, 33% was recyclable waste, 17% was general waste, and 17% was hazardous waste. The waste was separated as salable and non-salable waste, and the latter was incinerated. Among all respondents, their levels of knowledge, attitudes and behaviors on waste reduction were high at 93.7%, 74.7% and 76.8%, respectively. (2) Based on the newly developed solid waste management model with LGO and community participation, four types of waste management were specified: (i) wet garbage was used for making compost or animal feed; (ii) recyclable waste was to be collected for sale or donation; the proceeds were used for supporting dependent people in the community; (iii) hazardous waste was collected at the village’s waste separation site for further proper disposal; and (iv) general waste was to be taken for disposal at a landfill or burning in a household incinerator. In this regard, local municipalities, community leaders and citizens had been encouraged participate and play a role in the solid waste management activities. Based on the satisfaction assessment of the participants, before and after the use of the model, the highest level of satisfaction increased from 3.33% to 42.8%. However, they have suggested that local regulations should be issued in line with the developed solid waste management model, periodic evaluations should jointly conducted on the operations of the model, and a further study should be carried out to explore the achievements or success factors of the model.