Recycling of garment factory waste a case study of Kongkear Phos community in Phnom Penh, Cambodia | |
| Author | Chou Putheany |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.UE-06-01 |
| Subject(s) | Factory and trade waste Cambodia Phnom Penh Clothing trade Waste disposal Cambodia Phnom Penh |
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | Kongkear Phos is the one of unplanned squatter settlements of poor communities in Phnom Penh. Untill995, there was no informal garment factory waste recycling in this community. The social and economic transition since the 1990s giving rise to the foreign direct investment inflows to Cambodia, especially textile and garment making has brought new opportunity to this community. Since 1995 the residents of the community got involved in these activities and they have been growing. Although many researches have been conducted on the community development in Cambodia, little documentations and analysis are available on the connection between the industrial waste recycling and increase of income in the community. The issue is important because it has bearing on the living environment in the community. In the above background, this study investigated (a) the role of garment factory waste's contribution in development of this community by improving people's livelihood and (b) contribution of these activities to reduce solid waste in the city. The field work included conducting of a questionnaire survey to systematically explore the working and living environment of the informal sector workers and their enterprises involved in garment factory waste recycling in Kongkear Phos. The findings reveal that the recycling activities in the community have to bring not only income generation opportunities but also to the overall community development. These activities have also to reduce of the demand for virgin raw materials thereby contributing to sustainable resource use. These activities contribute to solid waste management in the Phnom Penh city by reducing the amount of industrial waste. However, these activities are also encountering some problems as recycle waste materials become scarce and expensive. Growth of unplanned residential area, dust pollution, noise pollution, fire risk and health hazard to the residents of the community are some of the observed negative impacts. In order to reduce the negative impact so that the positive contributions of garment waste recycling activities to the poor can proceed smoothly, this study proposes some recommendations to improve the working and living environment in the community. The starting point is to recognize the importance of the role of the informal waste garment recycling activities. The community should work with private bank or NGOs to set up a unit to buy the recycled materials directly from the factories and distribute them to the household producers. Government should continue to give tax free privilege to this production. The recycling activities shall be free from all type of tax. The local government and NGOs should launch programs to raise awareness of the workers on the environmental problem and provide assistance for protection of their health |
| Year | 2006 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Environment, Resources, and Development (SERD) |
| Department | Department of Development and Sustainability (DDS) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Urban Environmental and Management (UE) |
| Chairperson(s) | Amin, A.T.M. Nurul ; |
| Examination Committee(s) | Perera, L.A.S. Ranjith;Kusakabe, Kyoko ; |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Government of Sweden (Sida); |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2006 |