Attitude and behavioral factors in waste management in the construction industry of Malaysia
Introduction
Construction and demolition (C&D) debris frequently comprises 10–30% of the waste received at many landfill sites around the world (Fishbein, 1998). According to McGarth and Anderson (2000), wastage rates within the UK construction industry may be as high as 10–15%. Construction waste contributes a large amount of solid waste generation in Australia (Lingard et al., 2000, Teo and Loosemore, 2001, McDonald and Smithers, 1998) and in the United States of America (Alexander, 1993, Helper, 1994) and Canada (Kalin, 1991). In Malaysia, the average amount of municipal solid waste generated was approximately 1.2 kg/day in 2000 (Agamuthu, 2001). The sources and quantities of municipal solid waste vary among local authorities in Malaysia depending on the township size and level of economic standards. The amount generated may range from 45 tonnes/day of municipal solid waste (MSW) in Kluang, which is a small town in a southern part of Peninsular Malaysia, to 3000 tonnes/day in Kuala Lumpur (Agamuthu et al., 2004). In the last two decades in Malaysia, extensive building and infrastructure development projects have led to an increase in construction waste generation. A study by Mohd Nasir et al. (1998) showed that 28.34% of waste comes from industrial and construction waste in the Central and Southern regions of Malaysia. As the construction industry develops, it generates substantial construction waste in Malaysia, which significantly impacts the environment and causes increased public concern among local communities. The environmental effects of the industry are directly related to the quality and quantity of waste it generates. Construction waste can significantly affect the performance and productivity of an organization (Alwi et al., 2002). In addition, Skoyles and Skoyles (1987) demonstrated that construction and demolition waste have become a burden to clients, as they must eventually bear the costs of waste. Thus, construction waste management has become important for improving the performance of the construction industry (Egan, 1998, Kulatunga et al., 2006). Thus, it is necessary to understand contractor attitudes and behaviors regarding waste management in the construction industry.
This paper intends to provide insights on how contractor attitudes and behaviors affect waste management in the construction industry of Malaysia. The second section of this paper reviews previous studies on attitudes and behaviors toward waste management. The third section describes this study's research methodology. Findings are presented in the fourth section, which include a logistic regression analysis of contractor attitudes and behaviors and a number of factors affecting such attitudes and behaviors. The final section provides a discussion and addresses the policy implications of this research.
Section snippets
A brief review of studies on attitudes and behaviors regarding waste management
Generally, attitude is a positive or negative feeling toward specific objects; it exerts an influence on behavior. Whether consciously or not, behavioral decisions are frequently based upon attitudes (Fabrigar, 2004). Herremans and Allwright (2000) demonstrated that posture, which includes awareness and attitude, leads to action and performance (behavior) regarding environmental management issues. Recent research on municipal solid waste management has focused on household participation and
Survey design and sampling method
A structured questionnaire survey was used to collect data by interviewing respondents from Klang Valley area who are registered as local contractors with the Construction Industry Development Board of Malaysia. A purposive stratified random sampling method was used. In the first stage of sampling, the study selected samples of contractors that were involved in general building and construction activities within the construction industry. Then, the samples were divided into three groups
Source reduction, reuse and recycling attitudes
Table 3 indicates that there is a very minor difference between positive (49%) and negative (50%) attitudes toward waste reduction measures among the 103 contractors that knew about source reduction from the total 130 samples. This supports the findings of Lingard et al. (2000), McDonald and Smithers (1998) and Teo et al. (2000), who suggest that attitudes toward waste reduction are generally positive. Alternatively, 46% and 54% of the 113 contractors that knew about reuse and recycling from
Sorting waste materials
Table 5 summarizes contractor waste-sorting behaviors among the three sampled groups. The survey results show that a vast majority (61%) of contractors do not sort their waste at construction sites. The results also show that contractor waste-sorting behaviors significantly differ (P < 0.01) among the three groups, with highest level of sorting observed in Group A, followed by Group C, and then Group B. Poon et al. (2001) demonstrated that on-site waste sorting is an effective means to reduce the
Discussion and conclusions
The findings of this study conclude that contractor attitudes and behaviors regarding waste management tend to differ based on the size of the contractor, which is indicated by its group or category. According to Teo and Loosemore (2001), attitudes regarding waste differ from one organization to another, depending on organizational culture and waste management policies. The results of this study are not directly comparable with available studies on household attitudes and behaviors regarding
Acknowledgements
This paper is part of a research project entitled “Waste Minimization and Recycling Potential of Construction Materials” funded by the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) of Malaysia. The project is a collaboration between the Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI) of the University Kebangsaan Malaysia and the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM). We are grateful to the contractors and their staff for providing information and data.
References (63)
- et al.
A benefit cost analysis on the economic feasibility of construction waste minimization: the case of Malaysia
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
(2006) - et al.
Hong Kong citizen's attitude towards waste recycling and waste minimization measures
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
(1994) - et al.
Environmental concern: conceptual definitions, measurement methods, and research findings
Journal of Environmental Psychology
(1999) - et al.
Public participation in plastics recycling schemes
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
(1998) - et al.
Reasons for non-participation in a kerbside recycling scheme
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
(2003) - et al.
Issues associated with transforming household attitudes and opinions into material recovery: a review of two kerbside recycling schemes
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
(2001) - et al.
On-site sorting of construction and demolition waste in Hong Kong
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
(2001) A weekly doorstep recycling collection, I had no idea we could! Overcoming the local barriers to participation
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
(1999)- et al.
Implementation of environmental management in the Hong Kong construction industry
International Journal of Project Management
(2002) On the effectiveness of implementing a waste-management-plan method in construction
Waste Management
(2008)
Assessing the levels of material wastage affected by sub-contracting relationships and projects types with their correlations
Building and Environment
Towards adoption of prefabrication in construction
Building and Environment
Evaluations of existing waste recycling methods: a Hong Kong study
Building and Environment
Determining the drivers for householder pro-environmental behavior: waste minimization compared to recycling
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
Solid waste: principle and management
Towards efficient waste management in a developing country (Malaysia) – the dilemma
Attitude theory and the attitude–behavior relation
Making job-site recycling work
Journal of Light Construction
Waste in the Indonesian construction projects
Factors influencing environmental attitudes and behaviors a UK. case study of household waste management
Environment and Behavior
Differences between household waste reduction, reuse and recycling behavior: a study of reported behaviors, intentions and explanatory variables
Environmental & Waste Management
A conceptual framework for understanding and analyzing attitudes towards household-waste management
Environment and Planning
Construction waste: quantification and source evaluation
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Who is the recycler?
Journal of Waste Management and Resource Recovery
The nation's builders and contractors directory 2001–2002
Beyond the intention—behavior mythology: an integrated model of recycling
Market Theory
Rethinking construction: report from the construction task force
An in-depth study of the effects of socio-economic conditions on household waste recycling practices
Waste Management and Research
Social influence; PSYC 399-2004
Building for the future: strategies to reduce construction and demolition waste in municipal projects
Material waste in building industry: main causes and prevention
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management
Cited by (249)
Local scale dynamics to promote the sustainable management of construction and demolition waste
2023, Resources, Conservation and Recycling AdvancesAn assessment of the illegal dumping of construction and demolition waste
2023, Cleaner Waste SystemsExploring the trends in construction and demolition waste (C&DW) research: A scientometric analysis approach
2023, Sustainable Energy Technologies and AssessmentsWaste management practices in the developing nations: challenges and opportunities
2023, Waste Management and Resource Recycling in the Developing World