A Waste Bank Based on the 3R Concept: Student Interest in Waste Management at the Department of Economics, University of Brawijaya

Sri Muljaningsih

doi:10.2478/cee-2021-0041

Abstract

Abstract The establishment of a waste bank could be a social engineering tool for changing the mindset of students. This waste bank can be managed and made useful via the so-called “3R” concept (reduce, reuse, and recycle), which is the main principle used by waste banks. This study aimed to determine students’ interest in managing waste. The sample comprised three classes of students who are enrolled in natural resource economics courses from the Economics and Business Faculty of the University of Brawijaya. Each class has 31 students. Quantitative multivariate research was performed using a Likert scale. Validity and reliability tests were performed for behavioral control and to manage waste variables. Data analysis was used Multivariate analysis, and Bartlett’s test of sphericity was used for significance of the data. Results show that the behavioral control variable was positively correlated with and was influenced by the intention to manage waste or the interest in managing waste. We suggested that waste bank systems—in which waste can be exchanged for food or other products—could be applied in campus environments and that a waste bank should be established in the Faculty of Economics and Business of the University of Brawijaya.

Highlights

Waste increases with population growth, and the amount of waste generated by a growing population is often not managed properly
Behavioral control is used as an independent variable and intention to manage or interest in waste management is used as the dependent variable
It will train the students to be active to prevent pollution and protect human health by practicing waste management [29]. These findings reveal that the behavioral control of students enrolled in natural resource economics and environmental economics courses encourages their interest in managing waste

Summary

Introduction

Waste increases with population growth, and the amount of waste generated by a growing population is often not managed properly. A community usually manages waste by using an end-ofpipe approach, in which waste is collected, transported, and disposed of only at final processing [1]. This is the case in almost all Indonesian cities [2]. According to the City of Sanitation and Landscaping Office of Malang, waste always increases. Law Number 18 in 2008 concerning waste management, along with Government Regulation Number 81 in 2012, created a fundamental paradigm in waste management from the collection–transport–disposal paradigm to the process of waste reduction and handling [4,5].

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Conclusion