Effect of Waste Management Practices on Environmental Sustainability in Urban Areas in South Africa
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47604/ijes.3760Keywords:
Waste Management Practices, Environmental Sustainability, Urban AreasAbstract
Purpose: To aim of the study was to analyze effect of waste management practices on environmental sustainability in urban areas in South Africa.
Methodology: This study adopted a desk methodology. A desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. This is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. Our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries.
Findings: Waste management practices in urban areas of South Africa play a major role in promoting environmental sustainability by reducing pollution, conserving resources, and improving public health. Effective recycling, waste collection, and disposal systems help minimize landfill overflow and lower greenhouse gas emissions in rapidly growing cities. However, challenges such as inadequate infrastructure, illegal dumping, and limited public awareness continue to hinder sustainable waste management efforts.
Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: Theory of planned behavior, the circular economy theory & the ecological modernization theory may be used to anchor future studies on the effect of waste management practices on environmental sustainability in urban areas in South Africa. This study contributes to practice by giving urban managers, households, businesses, and waste service providers practical guidance on how to improve environmental sustainability through better waste handling. This study contributes to policy by providing evidence that waste management should be treated as a key environmental sustainability issue, not just a sanitation function.
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