Waste management is an essential part of sustainable development and environmental protection. Customers’ attitudes and behavior play a key role in the effectiveness of implemented systems for separate waste collection. The EU’s ambitious waste reduction targets undoubtedly require increased personal activity. This study aims to provide up-to-date information on household practices for waste management by identifying factors, as well as determining peoples’ attitudes and concerns. The data and analysis are presented based on a large-scale survey in Bulgaria from settlements of different sizes and demographic characteristics, and the results outline specific ways to improve existing policies and strategies. Education in schools and financial incentives together with penalty payments, are the most motivating for proper waste separation at household level, the importance of unification of the regulatory framework and effective collection schemes, appropriate structure, and satisfactory storage capacity are also emphasized.
Author Contributions
Conceptualization, S.P., B.N., V.G., M.D., A.E.-M. and M.R.; methodology, S.P., V.G., M.D., A.E.-M. and M.R.; software, M.R.; validation, M.D., A.E.-M. and M.R.; formal analysis, M.R.; investigation, V.G.; resources, S.P. and M.R.; data curation, M.D., A.E.-M. and M.R.; writing—M.D., A.E.-M. and M.R.; writing—review and editing, S.P.; visualization, M.D., A.E.-M. and M.R.; supervision, M.R.; project administration, S.P.; funding acquisition, S.P. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding
This research was funded by the Bulgarian National Science Fund (BNSF), Grant No. KP-06-N65/13.
Institutional Review Board Statement
Ethical review and approval were waived for this study due to the anonymous and voluntary participation into the survey.
Informed Consent Statement
Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.
Data Availability Statement
Data are available upon request to the authors.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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