The Effect of Demographic Factors on Waste Generation and Heavy Metal in Illegal Landfill at Malaka Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province

Abstract

The population growth has led to a significant increase in the amount of waste every year. Meanwhile, several demographic factors influencing waste generation in Malaka Regency include an absence of a final landfill. This has caused the illegal dumping of waste which leads to various environmental problems. Therefore, this study aims to (I) analyze the effect of demographic factors on waste generation (II) determine the level of heavy metals and the chemical properties of the soil in the illegal landfill. In this study, the demographic factor sampling was conducted in all districts using a questionnaire to obtain each household sample and waste was weighed directly with the Stratified Random Sampling method. Also, soil samples at the landfill site were obtained through field observation and composite sampling. The results showed that age, gender of each family head, income, occupation, latest education, and the number of family members had a significant effect on waste generation in Malaka Regency. Based on the results, the content of Pb, Cd, and Hg in the soil at different waste disposal sites in Malaka Regency had passed the standard threshold value in soil, which showed that the land had been polluted by heavy metals.