Influence of socio-economic factors on household solid waste (HSW) generation of the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador.

Abstract

This paper estimated the household solid waste (HSW) generation and composition in Guayaquil, Ecuador. The study also determined the socio-economic factors influencing the waste generation of the households in the city by using Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression. For this effect, a stratified random sampling methodology was used, resulting in the selection of 665 sample households for this study. The applied methodology resulted in a composition of HSW: organic waste (72,6%), plastic (8,7%), glass (2,4%), metals (1,7%), paper and cardboard (6,6%),fabrics (2,5%), dust and ashes (2,9%) and other residues, such as hazardous and electronics (2,6%). This study suggests new insights concerning the role of socioeconomic characteristics and its effects in the generation of household waste and waste composition in Guayaquil, Ecuador.