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 DOI: 10.1177/0734242X09103191 2009 27: 625 originally published online 26 May 2009Waste Manag Res

P. Agamuthu, K.M. Khidzir and Fauziah Shahul HamidDrivers of sustainable waste management in Asia

  

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ISSN 0734–242XWaste Management & Research

2009: 27: 625–633DOI: 10.1177/0734242X09103191

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Drivers of sustainable waste management in AsiaAgamuthu, P., K. M. Khidzir, Fauziah Shahul HamidInstitute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Drivers of sustainable waste management are defined as groups of related factors that influence the development (or lackthereof) of industry. There has been no attempt to reasonably list the drivers that influence sustainable waste management inAsia. In this review, four groups of drivers of sustainable waste management, specifically of Asia, are explained. The four groupsof drivers consist of three human elements (human, economic and institutional) and the environment as a single driving group.Typically, the first three groups have been very influential, with the environment driver, noticeably, only considered when pre-ceded by other groups of drivers. The interconnectedness of the drivers and neglect of the environment driver is discussed. Itis concluded that while the essence of the four groups of drivers can be found all over Asia, each driving group must be inves-tigated in a local context and all information combined to devise sustainable waste management policies or strategies.

Keywords: Sustainable waste management, drivers, policy formulation, effective governance, Asia

IntroductionThe sustainable management of waste is a pressing problem.The human population (over 6 billion people worldwide) in2004 generated approximately 1.2 trillion kg of municipal solidwaste (MSW), with the annual future generation of MSW esti-mated to increase by 7% (Governing Council of the UnitedNations Environment Programme 2008).

Wilson et al. (2001) studied sustainable waste managementin several European cities and defined drivers as factors thatpositively (termed facilitators) or negatively (termed con-straints) alter an existing waste management system. Wilson(2007) elucidated the history of waste management and itsdrivers in the European Union, North America and the devel-oping countries taken as a whole.

Although the various drivers of solid waste managementare applicable at a basic level in every country, the strength ofeach driver and depth of interaction with other drivers will beunique in each waste management scenario (a municipality,city or entire country). Thus, a major reason to study driversis to identify the unique set of drivers in respective countries.The unique set of drivers serves as the starting point todesign waste management strategy or policies based on tangi-ble local trends or evidence, rather than adopting best prac-tices from elsewhere which may not address local characteris-tics, customs, peculiarities or waste composition. Policies are

ideal when pro-actively driven by trends/evidence/facts (Wil-son et al. 2007) and tailored for each unique local scenario.This ensures the policy has practicality and realism.

Studying the drivers of sustainable waste management in AsiaAs more countries in Asia realize their annual economicgoals, there will be an increase in the standards of living.With increased affluence comes increased consumption andincreased waste generation. Increased waste generation is amajor driver catalysing the growth of the waste managementindustry. Other drivers that affect the paradigms, policies/strategies and trends of waste management are often subtleand poorly elucidated.

There have been few attempts to identify the groups ofdrivers of waste management, and none for the general wastemanagement scenario in Asia. Academic effort has been con-centrated mainly on technical/operational aspects, namelyimproving current practices/techniques and innovating newones. Policy research and trend studies are often seen as agovernmental domain and have only recently received partic-ipation from scientific researchers.

The objective of this article is to elucidate four groups ofdrivers that influence sustainable waste management, and

Corresponding author: Agamuthu, P., Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.E-mail: agamuthu@um.edu.myReceived 2 April 2008; accepted in revised form 22 January 2009

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elaborate on the inter-connectedness between them, specifi-cally in the context of several developed and developingAsian countries.

This article builds on Wilson (2007) by re-organizing itssix factors that influence sustainable waste management,including: public health, environmental protection, resourcevalue of waste, closing the loop, institutional and responsibilityissues, public awareness into four groups of drivers (human,economic, institutional and environmental) and expanded onthem, from the Asian perspective.

The authors believe the grouping of drivers in this articlecaptures the common essence of each individual driver,rather than treating each intrinsically related driver individu-ally. The grouping in this article allows a more comprehen-sive classification of the drivers.

The authors believe that if sustainable waste manage-ment plans are to be devised, they have to be based on localconditions. A good way of identifying these conditions is bystudying the ‘drivers’ in the planner’s area of responsibility(AOR).

Having stated this, a study of the local conditions could becarried out easily if the drivers have been identified and cata-logued in more-or-less related groups. The authors havedone both in this article.

Group of human driversThe group of human drivers, divided into three, is the foun-dation of sustainable waste management.

The disposition of humans to discard what is not neededcreates the need for waste management. Where more humanactivities exist, more waste materials will be generated. Sus-tainable waste management is carried out to ensure thehealth and comfort of all humans is provided at a basic andreasonable level. Good sanitation leads to better health,higher productivity and possibly a better quality of life. Bet-ter education on the ways to reduce or reuse wastes reducesthe burden of managing wastes.

The increase in human population and waste generationHuman activities increase in tandem with the increase in pop-ulation. Increased human activities cause an increase in thevolume of waste generated.

The presence of waste creates the basic need for sustaina-ble waste management operations. The need has a rippleeffect – it drives legislation, action by the authorities, techni-cal and technological innovation, etc.

China, for example, had an average annual populationgrowth of 0.63% between 2000 and 2006. During this period,the average annual generation of non-industrial wastewaterincreased by 6.4% and non-hazardous industrial solid wastesincreased by 12.7%. In four years for which data is available(2000, 2003, 2004 and 2005), average annual municipal wastegeneration increased by 13% (Table 1 for figures and refer-ences). Japan, with a similar annual population growth in thesame period (0.6% between 2000 and 2004), showed 1.4%increase in total waste generated (Table 2 for figures and ref-erences).

There is a quantitative and logical connection between anincreasing population and increasing waste generation. Humanactivity inevitably generates waste materials, and this is thequintessential driver of waste management.

Health and well-beingThe maintenance of human and environmental health is oneof the main objectives of waste management (Brunner &Fellner 2007).

Table 1: Population and waste generation figures for China (2000–2006).

YearPopulation

(billion persons)1Non-industrial wastewater

(million kg)3Non-hazardous industrial solid

wastes (billion kg)3Municipal waste

(billion kg)4

2000 1.2662 Not available Not available 150

2002 1.285 2.32 0.945 Not available

2003 1.292 2.47 1.004 1495

2004 1.300 2.61 1.200 190

2005 1.308 2.81 1.345 2006

2006 1.314 2.97 1.515 Not available1 National Bureau of Statistics, China (2007a), except where noted.2 China Statistics Press (2001).3 National Bureau of Statistics, China (2007b) and National Bureau of Statistics, China (2007c).4 World Bank (2005), except where noted.5 United Nations Statistics Division (2007a).6 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (2008).

Table 2: Population and waste generation figures for Japan (1990–2004).

YearPopulation (persons)1

Total waste generated (billion kg)2

2000 126 926 000 511

2004 127 687 000 5181 Statistics Bureau of Japan (2008a).2 Statistics Bureau of Japan (2008b).

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Governments are elected to provide for the people, mostimportantly in the aspect of public health. This includeswaste management and disposal, which reduced the threat ofunsanitary conditions and disease.

It is the mandate of proper sanitary management andhealthcare that spurs the construction of drains, reservoirs,water treatment plants or landfills and the implementation ofsolid waste collection and recycling. This is the health driverin the group of human drivers.

Effectiveness between governments can be informallycompared by the availability and effectiveness of public amen-ities, cleanliness of the constituency, percentage of urban pop-ulation or low-income communities provided with waste col-lection services or by the percentage of wastes properlydisposed and recycled (Wilson 2008).

An example of poor waste management leading to a seri-ous public health problem was a plague outbreak that occurredin Surat, India in 1994. This outbreak was attributed to poorsolid waste collection (Wilson 2006) that led to rat prolifera-tion, which increased the dispersal of the Yersinia pestis, bac-teria that caused plague.

Education and awarenessEducation of the public and awareness of current environ-mental issues are important drivers in the group of humandrivers. Education will influence the way humans respondand co-operate on waste management issues.

Any waste management policy requires co-operation fromall sides, especially from the general public. Abbreviationslike NIMBY (not in my backyard), LULU (locally unaccepta-ble land use) (Wilson et al. 2001) and NOTE (not over thereeither) are frequently used to describe resistance from the pub-lic towards new waste management or disposal programmes.More often than not, this resistance can be softened by edu-cation and awareness. Waste management campaigns mustbegin with the dissemination of information to secure thepublic’s agreement or co-operation. When information is dis-seminated, the public becomes better informed of the objec-tives, strengths and weaknesses of campaigns and can partic-ipate accordingly. This promotes creative responses to anyshortcomings.

The 1994 plague outbreak in Surat, India highlighted theimportance of awareness in the context of public health. Theexperience served as a driver and the lesson learned was thatthe removal of MSW is important to ensure public health.Moving forward, all local solid waste collection systems weremandated and monitored by the central government (Das-gupta 2005).

A good basis for developing the education/awareness driveris academic capacity building in the context of sustainabledevelopment and waste management. For example, co-operation between university academics in Malaysia andDenmark, with students conducting field research in differ-ent countries and reporting back to their respective supervi-sors fostered the exchange of ideas and good working rela-tionships between universities of the two countries, which

lead to collaborative research and the development of newcurricula (Agamuthu & Hansen 2007). The activities becamethe groundwork in the training of future students and aca-demics in sustainable development and waste management.

Chenayah et al. (2007) studied the factors affecting recy-cling activities in a Malaysian municipality. They concludedthat creation of awareness should be given the greatest prior-ity as it is expected to increase recycling activities by 20% withconcurrent increases in auxiliary facilities. Patience, knowl-edge dispersal, simplified scientific literature and explanationon the pros and cons of the project will spread awarenesswithin the communities involved. This coupled with reasona-ble environmental and technical rationale and a transparentsite selection process (World Bank 1999) will help ensuresmooth implementation of waste management campaigns.

Group of economic driversThe group of economic drivers is divided into two – the firstis the availability of funds and socioeconomics and the sec-ond is profiting from waste.

A waste management policy can only be deemed effectivewhen waste materials are consistently managed (which isheavily dependent on availability of funds) for a period oftime. This requires waste management administrators tohave sufficient funds for that time period or to have the nec-essary infrastructure to collect revenue or earn profits frominvestments. Planners must look at their organization’s finan-cial health before deciding if and how wastes in their AORcan be managed.

On the other hand, scavenging wastes for items that aresalvageable to be sold is also a major economic driver for the3Rs (reduction–reutilization–recycling).

Availability of funds and socio-economicsIt requires a lot of money to run waste management opera-tions and so the availability of funds stands as the most influ-ential driver of all.

There is a persistent legislative problem of funding sourcesfor solid waste management. The problem is serious in the cit-ies of the developing countries in Asia. Waste administratorsdo not see eye-to-eye with the public and its lawmakers. Forexample, in India, MSW management funds for cities areobtained by revenue and other taxes but are generally insuf-ficient. Charges proposed to be borne by the public are metwith objections (Moulik 2005) and remain a contentiousissue.

To illustrate costs, several estimations are provided. TheUnited Nations Environmental Programme (2008) estimatedthat 20–50% of a city’s administration budget is allocated forsolid waste management. The collection of waste alone hasbeen estimated to consume 20% of a city’s administrationbudget (Wilson 2007). In Malaysia, the waste collectionbudget ranged between 20 and70%, depending on the size ofthe municipality or city. Cointreau’s (2006) estimation forthe budget consumed by waste collection in developing coun-tries is 60–70%, with complete solid waste services consum-

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ing 1–2% of a country’s gross domestic product (GDP). Dis-posal in landfills, semi-engineered landfills and open dumpsis the traditional waste disposal method used in most Asiancountries.

Typically, governments with higher revenue spend more onwaste management. This is evident when studying developingcountries in South-east Asia. The World Bank (1999) esti-mated that Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia [1994 per capita grossnational product (GNP) US$ 4000] spent US$ 15 per capita(0.38% of its per capita GNP) on solid waste managementwhile Manila (1995 per capita GNP US$ 1070) spent US$ 4 percapita (0.37% of its per capita GNP) and Hanoi, Vietnam(1994 per capita GNP US$ 250) spent US$ 2 per capita (0.80%of its per capita GNP) on solid waste management.

Whereas the availability of funds drives operations, socio-economic data provides information as to what kind of wastemanagement operation to undertake. A country’s socio-eco-nomic status is correlated to several niche areas in terms ofsolid waste composition. It is a subtle but reasonable andconsistent link. Socio-economic data allows general infer-ences about what kind of solid waste materials are generatedand allows planners to assess whether critical mass is or canbe achieved before committing to a plan. Thus, socio-eco-nomic status could also be seen as driving the type of policy acountry adopts on solid waste disposal (i.e. recycling, com-posting, incineration, etc.).

For example, high paper utilization was noted in countrieswith high GNP; USA (1995 per capita GNP US$ 26 980,313 kg consumed year–1) and Japan (1995 per capita GNPUS$ 39 640, 225 kg consumed year–1) are traditionally highpaper consumers (World Bank 1999). Countries with lowerGNP, such as Indonesia (1995 per capita GNP US$ 980, 10 kgconsumed year–1) or Vietnam (1995 per capita GNP US$ 2401,1 kg consumed year–1) were listed as 17th and 23rd, respec-tively.

Organic waste generation is noted to be lower in countrieswith high GDP. In South Korea (2004 GDP US$ 606 billion),organic material was approximately 28% of municipal waste,compared with 48% inorganic waste and 24% paper. In Nepal(2004 GDP US$ 6 billion), organic material was approxi-mately 66% of municipal waste, compared with 39% inor-ganic waste and 11% paper. Finally, in Indonesia (2005 GDPUS$ 295 billion), organic material was approximately 56% ofmunicipal waste, compared witho 22% inorganic waste and21% paper (United Nations Statistics Division 2007b, c).

Generally, solid waste materials generated in developingcountries consist of 5–15% recyclable material. It also con-sists of 40–80% organic matter, leading to 40–70% moisturecontent, with a calorific value of 800–1300 kcal kg–1 (Cointreau2006).

Taking this information into consideration, in the develop-ing countries of Asia, it would be prudent to first estimatethe composition of organic waste materials being generated.This is done to decide on the ideal treatment, economic con-siderations included. Recycling is the general idea that comesto mind: composting is a straightforward recycling option, with

anaerobic digestion as a disposal alternative. When properlydone, either method preserves the environment, lessens theburden on landfills and offers some economic returns (saleof compost or energy generation from combusting gases, forexample, methane from digestion).

Profiting from wasteWaste recovery plays an important role in the operational andeconomical aspect of waste management. There are manytypes of wastes that can be recovered for sale.

This economic driver differs in the effect that it has incomparison with the availability of funds and socio-econom-ics. It drives waste management after it is generated (‘post-waste generation’ phase) as the reason for waste sorting andrecycling activities. These activities lead to better utilizationof natural resources, energy conservation and also lesseningburden on landfills.

The city of Yokohama, in Japan, has made exporting sal-vaged recyclable paper and plastics an economic activity(Contreras et al. 2006). Between 1990 and 2005, the export ofsalvaged paper increased from 0.02 to 3.1 billion kg, and col-lected plastic increased from 0.04 to 0.1 billion kg. Large,developing countries such as China and India use recycledproducts as secondary raw materials for development (Wilson2006) and are frequently the buyers of recyclable material.

In the developing countries of Asia, informal waste recov-ery is the livelihood for approximately 2% of the urban poor(Wilson et al. 2006). In Chennai, India and Dhaka, Bangla-desh, groups of families or neighbourhood residents hireindividuals or entrepreneurs to collect waste. The waste col-lectors sort through the waste and recyclable materials arecollected and sold to supplement their income (UnitedNations Department of Economic and Social Affairs 2004).

In Malaysia, many private lorry owners supplement theirincomes by itinerantly purchasing used paper or car batteriesfrom households and re-selling it to local commercial recy-cling centres. Another example of the existence of itinerantwaste buyers is in Sri Lanka and Vietnam where they collectorganic waste to be composted (United Nations Economicand Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, 2008).

The clean development mechanisms (CDM) serves as amethod for countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emis-sions, in line with ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. Itinvolves industrialized countries assisting the developmentof projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in transition/developing countries in exchange for certified emissionreductions (CERs) (Plochl et al. 2008). Common CDM inwaste management include landfill methane recovery, opti-mized wastewater treatment, controlled aerobic compostingand incineration for waste-to-energy (Bogner et al. 2008).CDM serves as an economic driver by encouraging sustaina-ble waste management practices.

A negative result of the impact made by this driver is childwaste pickers/scavengers. In India, Cambodia and the Philip-pines, children aged between 4 and 18 years who scavengewaste piles for recyclable materials can earn 30–50% of their

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parents’ income (International Labor Organization 2004).These children face injuries and are denied opportunities forformal schooling. Child scavenging is not sustainable – itconstitutes an exploitation of child labor and perpetuates thecycle of poverty.

Group of institutional driversThe group of institutional drivers can be thought of ashuman activity en masse – at the research, governmental orbusiness level. It has great potential for change but is ulti-mately dependent on the efforts of many people.

Scientific research and developmentThe vision of academic research does not always contributeto industrial or applied activities (Davis 2008), but there isnew and innovative research that is changing the perception,utilization and management policies of waste materials.Research leads to development and localization of technol-ogy that drives the development of new waste managementpractices.

For example, organic waste materials of municipal originare no longer seen as material destined for landfills – theyare composted. Significant portions of MSW generated fromdeveloping countries in Asia have high organic matter andmoisture contents. This, combined with generally tropical orequatorial climates, results in a suitable environment forcompost production. Compost science in Asia is bloomingdue to the simple technology required and the opportunityfor direct commercialization of the end product. In Malaysia,compost production was reported on rural/sub-urban MSW(Blaise & Agamuthu 2004) and compost derived from agri-cultural waste has been used as a low-cost cover on closedlandfills in tropical conditions, to reduce methane emissions(Agamuthu & Khidzir 2008).

Solid state fermentation (SSF) can be defined as thegrowth of micro-organisms on a natural or man-made inertsolid substrate (Pandey et al. 1999). It is another area ofresearch that has received similar attention. Similar to com-posting, SSF has carved a niche in waste management byadding value to organic solid waste materials (usually of agri-cultural origin), by harnessing it as a starter material for bio-logical processes. Examples are the production of enzymesfrom brewery spent grain (Khidzir et al. 2007), flavouringcompounds using coffee husk (Soares et al. 2000) and fungalpigments from seeds of jackfruit (Babitha et al. 2007) Etha-nol production utilizing agricultural wastes is also a populararea of research.

Similar to the EU emphasis on holistic waste management(Wilson 2007), Japan has articulated the need for sustainableproduction and resource efficiency, in order to preserve nat-ural resources and to minimize negative impacts on the envi-ronment. Scientific research is the key to this. In 2003, theJapanese Ministry for the Environment issued a plan toestablish a sound material cycle society (Ministry of theEnvironment, Japan 2008). In 2005, Japan articulated anaction plan to promote the idea of sound material cycle soci-

eties at a global scale. Research initiatives, especially on the3Rs of reduction–reutilization–recycling were emphasized.Aside from researching implementation of the 3Rs in indus-tries, laws were to be amended to promote the 3Rs. Fundingfor waste management research was directed to emphasizetechnologies based on the 3Rs (Ministry of the Environment,Japan 2005).

The increasing body of knowledge on landfill operationsin the developing countries of Asia has consensus thatdeemed it unsustainable for long-term solid waste disposaloptions. Landfills in the developing countries of Asia usuallyoperate to the environmental standards of an open dumpand emit several types of greenhouse gases. On the otherhand, incinerator operations are expensive, despite beingcapable of energy recovery. Furthermore, a majority of coun-tries in Asia do not have suitable solid waste materials in thecritical mass necessary to justify incineration. Some Asiancountries oppose the introduction of incineration due to itscost and for fear it may cause air pollution. Science contrib-utes towards increased reuse of solid waste (by recycling orcomposting) by reasonably elucidating the lack of sustaina-bility associated with landfills and the considerable costsassociated with incineration.

LawLocal legislation can facilitate or constrain any waste man-agement policy or project. Legislation is a major driver in thegroup of institutional drivers of waste management. Itchanges the way waste materials are managed or disposed.Sustainable waste management must be grounded in locallegislation that is geographically and culturally feasible, rea-sonable and far-sighted.

In order to achieve this, co-operation by various players isessential. Administrators and politicians should provide orsecure support for sustainable waste management laws(Joseph 2006). Lawmakers should seek to devise or amendlaws to serve the waste and cultural traits unique to theirlocal areas, taking into consideration as many other driversas possible.

An example of the legislation driver is the Malaysian SolidWaste and Public Cleansing Management Bill. The Bill waspassed in August 2007 (Agamuthu et al. 2009) with imple-mentation expected in 2009. This legislation is expected torevamp the way solid wastes are managed in Malaysia. Itincorporates centralized management of waste collection(compared to the responsibility previously held by munici-palities and state governments), introduce a waste separationprogramme directed at waste generators and have stricterenforcement laws (Agamuthu & Fauziah 2007). It also haselements of a pay-as-you-throw and penalty system, despitethis being a locally unpopular aspect.

Legislation can also unite and guide the various players inwaste management. In Japan (Yong 2000) environmentalprinciples, executive power and waste management opera-tions are in harmony. While the Diet (parliament) passeslaws, encourages producer responsibility and actively pro-

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motes recycling (Contreras et al. 2006), considerable opera-tional autonomy is given to individual prefectures. Busi-nesses, non-governmental organizations and private citizensactively participate in environmental plans. In 2001, theJapan Home Appliance Recycling Law came into effect andcaused a 20% increase in collection of air conditioners, TVsets, refrigerators and washing machines for recycling (UnitedNations Department of Economic and Social Affairs 2004).

Local legislature must take global environmental initia-tives into consideration as well. The 1987 Montreal Protocol(UNEP 2000) is one example of an environmental protocolon a global scale. Regional examples are seen in the EU: theEU Council Directive 99/131/EC (European Commission2007) and the Aarhaus Convention that must be ratified byall potential candidates for EU membership. It has beenstated that all potential candidates must also amend existingwaste management laws to align with EU environmental leg-islature (European Commission 2004).

Business image and profitabilityBusiness organizations are increasingly placing themselves asenvironmental players and voluntarily practice producerresponsibility. This could be associated with greater con-sumer awareness on environmental responsibility issues. Theincreased consumer awareness drives businesses to do morefor the environment in order to maintain or gain consumersupport. This activity contributes to the effectiveness ofwaste management plans.

Increasing legislation on hazardous materials and occupa-tional safety also pushes businesses to create products anddevise processes that are environmentally friendly (Glisovicet al. 2005).

The manufacturing industries practice sustainable pro-duction and waste management to reduce their waste, boosttheir business image and secure long-term efficiency andprofitability. Life-cycle analysis allows redundancy and wast-age to be identified; the result is cleaner production. Liew &Agamuthu (2004) conducted life-cycle analysis on an electro-plating plant in Malaysia. Based on their recommendations,wastewater was utilized and existing equipment was modifiedto minimize heat loss. From these activities, a 10% reductionin power costs, increased efficiency and an ISO 140001 certi-fication was reported.

Hewlett Packard packages provide all new ink or tonercartridges with postage-paid shipping materials with the pur-pose of encouraging the consumer to return spent cartridgesfor recycling (Hewlett-Packard 2008). Dell Inc. offers a serv-ice that properly disposes of unwanted computers and itsperipheral equipment (Dell Incorporated 2008). The resourcesavailable to large corporations allow them to drive waste man-agement projects either financially (Wilson 2006), technicallyor personnel-wise.

The environment as a driverEconomically developed Asian countries (e.g. Japan, Singa-pore and the Republic of Korea) have waste management

practices that are environmentally sustainable, but histori-cally, this has not been the case in the developing countries.

Environmental issues – global warming, increasing carbonemissions and the lack of potable water, drive current trendsin science, education, waste management, disposal orresearch. This is reflected in governance as well: policies arenow either formulated or amended to include environmentalconsiderations. Thus, only recently has the environmentbecome a major driver of waste management and disposal inthe greater parts of Asia.

The availability of a country’s environmental resourcesdrives individual waste management procedures. The needto use land for residential or commercial purposes pre-cludes the establishment of waste disposal methods such aslandfills or incinerators. Other natural factors (geological/geographic suitability, safety, etc) also affect the type ofwaste disposal.

A direct example is the availability of suitable land forwaste disposal sites. In Malaysia (land mass 329 847 km2,population approximately 27 million people), disposal ofsolid waste in landfills is the method of choice whereas Singa-pore (704 km2 in size, population approximately 4.1 millionpeople) primarily utilizes incineration to dispose of its solidwaste (Bai & Sutanto 2002, Statistics Singapore 2008), due tothe lack of available land. Japan (377 873 km2 in size, popula-tion approximately 128 million people) incinerates approxi-mately 74% of its municipal waste (United Nations StatisticsDivision 2007a, Statistics Bureau of Japan 2008c) due to thelack of geologically suitable land. There are landfills in Singa-pore and Japan, though: Semakau in Singapore (SingaporeNational Environment Agency 2002) and the Tokyo BayLandfill in Japan (Palaypayon & Ohta 2007), which catersmainly to accommodate incineration ash.

Many countries in Asia have environmental concernsaligned with their economic objectives. For example, inMalaysia’s economic development plan for 2006 to 2010, thereduction of negative environmental impacts together withobjectives for conservation of biodiversity was emphasized(Economic Planning Unit of the Prime Minister’s Depart-ment, Malaysia 2007). In China’s economic developmentplan for 2001 to 2005 (The 10th Five-Year Plan (2001–2005),from www.china.org.cn 2007a), the increase of forest cover-age and urban green areas were two major objectives, whilein China’s economic development plan for 2006 to 2010, sus-tainable development, the issues of wastage of naturalresources and environmental deterioration and its remedia-tion were acknowledged and incorporated in the new devel-opment mode (The New 11th Five-Year Guidelines, fromwww.china.org.cn 2007b).

DiscussionThe inter-connectedness between groups of driversThe groups of drivers work as a dynamic, interconnected sys-tem. All groups of drivers, or at least a member of the group,but in varying degrees, and at different times would affect awaste management policy/strategy. Drivers will interact with

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each other as well, resulting in either a reduced or synergisticimpact on the policy/strategy at hand.

The success of a sustainable waste management policy,whose underlying objective must be to preserve humanhealth (human driver), depends on co-operation arising frompeople’s attitudes (human driver), which is precipitated byknowledge. The work that is done to gain new knowledge liesin the domain of the institutional drivers. Parties forming theinstitutional driver should also work on effective presentationand dissemination of information to ensure public awarenessand compliance. Realistically speaking, the amount of moneythat is available to planners to run a sustainable waste man-agement operation is crucial (the economic driver).

The group of institutional drivers encourages knowledge/evidence-based policies/strategies, given the proximity betweenlegislators, businesses and research. The institutional driver isa magnification of knowledge and attitudes, and can onlydrive sustainable waste management positively when peopleforming the institution have the necessary knowledge tostrategize and the institution itself has enough money to fundthe articulated strategy. Research is efficient and effectiveonly when done by a group of people, who provide the evi-dence and information that forms the basis of the policy/strat-egy.

It must be noted that the extent of the interaction couldblur the distinction between individual drivers and groups ofsimilar drivers, causing one particular driver to be almostsuitable to be considered in a different group.

Neglect of the environmentIn previous discussions, the environmental driver was notmentioned. The environment as a driver has become promi-nent only recently.

In the developing countries of Asia, waste managementpolicies have been effective despite the lack of environmen-tal sustainability. It has been observed that other drivers pre-cede or give rise to the environmental driver.

There are several reasons for this.

1. It has been effective to use long-established (often forgenerations), direct methods, which are not environmen-tally sustainable, for example, sewage disposed into rivers,solid waste dumped or burned illegally, etc.

2. Sustainable waste disposal programmes require signifi-cant financial investment in terms of education, technol-ogy and equipment that renders it too expensive when thebasic needs of people (food subsidies, budget for housingand education, etc.) are taken into consideration. Thus,people use the methods previously explained.

3. Policies that are ineffective or planners who react slowlyto change.

The environment is now increasing in prominence as a driverfor waste management policies. Several types of institutionaldrivers (worldwide environmental protocols, the push fromworldwide CDM initiatives, more effective communication

of scientific research and a greater willingness to adopt evi-dence-based policies) have contributed to the environmentaldriver being given greater consideration in policy formula-tion.

Aside from the institutional drivers, the economic/humandrivers, by way of financial contributions and technicaladvice from UNEP, the World Bank, DANIDA and individ-ual developed countries have also augmented the effect ofthe environmental driver. Developing Asian countries havegained financial and technical support to establish CDMprojects (again, the economic driver taking effect), many ofwhich are focused on sustainable waste disposal.

How can the study of drivers be useful?It is the authors’ opinion that an overarching sustainablewaste management plan can have, broadly, three operationalfacets.

1. Before wastes are generated (the ‘before stage’).2. During the activity (or activities) that generates wastes

(the ‘during stage’).3. After wastes are generated (the ‘after stage’).

Each facet is driven by one or several individual local drivers,the availability of which, have to be determined togetherwith the extent of the interactions with each other.

Analysis of the availability and interactions of the groupsof drivers allows planners to completely sum up the localwaste management scenario in their AOR and indirectly seethe strengths and weaknesses of the situation that couldfacilitate or constrain the plan to be devised.

This knowledge allows waste management planners todevise a grand strategy that gives a broad horizontal view of‘the way things actually are’ in their AOR and allows poten-tial issues to be anticipated and pro-actively dealt with.

With this in mind, planners can develop a plan that effi-ciently uses available resources. The plan could be based on(or harnessing) the major local drivers or it could work onstrengthening the weaknesses within the situation to developa more positive overall scenario for sustainable waste man-agement.

For example, planners who have an AOR consisting of theindustrial or manufacturing sectors could use the economicand institutional group of drivers to their advantage.

An example of a possible application of drivers’ analysis ispresented here.

1. In the ‘before stage’, planners could encourage wastereduction and cleaner production through business orproduct development incentives (e.g. lower taxation lev-ied onto low waste generators, or subsidized research anddevelopment of cleaner production options).

2. In the ‘during stage’, enforce waste reduction and cleanerproduction laws (e.g. fines for heavy polluters and chargeslevied onto waste requiring pre-treatment collected by thelocal government).

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3. In the ‘after stage’, planners could levy fees to collect anddispose of the wastes or exploit the fear of negative public-ity innately associated with businesses by publicizing unlaw-ful dumping and excessively high or dangerous waste gen-eration by companies.

Closing remarksIt is the opinion of the authors that in Asia, especially in thedeveloping countries, the economic driver historically hashighest impact. However, recent environmental and politicaltrends have increased the impact of the environment driver.Public health is also becoming a major driver (Asian Insti-tute of Technology, 2004). Funds are not always available forwaste management, which drives community initiatives for

waste collection and disposal. Many people in Asia make alivelihood from sorting of solid wastes and selling recyclablematerials. This too, drives sustainable waste management.

The legislative infrastructure and its enforcement is also adriver with high impact in Asia. The authors support thenotion that effectiveness, enforcement and practicality oflaws related to sustainable waste management often makesthe difference between success and failure, especially whenthe attitude of the public is concerned.

The drivers elucidated here have to be interpreted in thelocal context to be effective. It is hoped that the groups of driv-ers elucidated are seen as conceptual signposts for waste man-agement planners or as a checklist of factors to be investigatedat the local level when making decisions, especially in Asia.

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