Fundamental investigation of solid waste generation and disposal behaviour in higher education institute in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Waste characterization is a fundamental step for the development of solid waste management plan. In this regard, understanding the waste generation and disposal patterns plays a crucial role in developing realistic waste reduction strategies. Presently, there exists no solid waste management plan for higher education institutes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Hence, this article details the fundamental study related to the waste generation and disposal behaviour. The study also dwells into the existing practices of solid waste management and sheds light on the new polices that can be adopted for waste reduction, along with highlighting barriers to optimization of solid waste management. Through investigation, it was found that by adopting E-learning system for examination and replacing paper towels with air dryers in washroom and by revising policy related to printing, considerable reduction in paper waste could be achieved. Furthermore, the adoption of the proposed sustainable drinking water solution led to 90% reduction in plastic pet bottle waste. The recommendations made by the presented investigation can be employed by other similar sized institutes in developing countries for the development of sustainable green campuses.