Nasir Mehmood, Shahzad Ali Khan.
Solid waste generation and source minimization in urban rawalpindi, pakistan.
Pak J Public Health Jan ;4(2):9-11.

Background: Waste has been dened as material with no apparent economic or benecial value to individuals or societies. Urbanization, industrialization and increased convenience of life have resulted in generation of huge volumes of solid waste in major cities of the world. This study aimed at exploring the household level practices of waste disposal in Rawalpindi city. Methodology: A mixed method exploratory study was conducted in Rawalpindi. For the quantitative part, a household survey with housewife as respondent in 220 households was done by using a structured questionnaire. Solid waste of household on that particular day was collected and weighed by hand weighing scale. Three focus groups discussions with a group of 5-8 housewives were also conducted for the qualitative part of the study. Results: The study showed that only 60% households were doing some sort of segregation of solid waste before disposal. Only half of respondents showed satisfaction with solid waste collection and disposal system in Rawalpindi. About 73.2% respondents considered that collection and disposal of solid waste is responsibility of both households and Municipality. About half of the respondents interviewed were willing to reduce household solid waste at source, as well as to give time for voluntary efforts for improvement regarding collection and disposal of solid waste in their areas. Similarly half of the respondents were aware of recycling. Majority respondents knew that there is a relationship between proper solid waste management and health. Signicant relationship was noted between education and knowledge of waste minimization and recycling. Conclusion: As awareness level about the importance of solid waste management is increasing, safe disposal of solid waste can be achieved by increasing community participation in Rawalpindi. (Pak J Public Health 2014; 4(2):13) Key words: Solid waste prevention, household waste, behavior change, assessment of voluntary efforts.

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