CARLOS HILADO MEMORIAL STATE COLLEGE

THE LEVEL OF AWARENESS, ATTITUDES AND PRACTICES AMONG STUDENTS OF

CARLOS HILADO MEMORIAL STATE COLLEGE TOWARDS SOLID WASTE
MANAGEMENT

A Graduate School Project Paper Presented to the

Subject Methods of Research
Carlos Hilado Memorial State College

In Partial Fulfillment of the

Requirements for the Degree
Master’s in Public Administration

By:

Lumyen Castandiello
 Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Environmental problem is a global concern. It has no boundary. Around the world, efforts are
being made people aware about environmental protection. One of the main causes of
environmental degradation is improper management of waste disposal of solid waste. It is a
major cause of pollution and outbreak of diseases in many parts of the world. There is no
permanent solution for environmental problems, only thing we can reduce and control waste
generation by proper awareness and practice. One strategic approach to address this
environmental problem is through solid waste management. Waste management is needed to
reduce or mitigate the mounting global crisis on waste which endangers humanity, pollutes the
environment, and damages communities. In particular, solid waste management is "a form of
waste control, often associated with storage, collection, transport, process, and disposal of solid
waste following quality standard conservation, public health, engineering, economics, and other
environmental concerns" (Rahmaddin et al., 2015). In line with this principle, the Philippine
government signed into law the Republic Act (R.A.) 9003 which is also known as Ecological
Solid Waste Management Act of 2000. The law provides the legal basis for a systematic,
comprehensive and ecological solid waste management program which shall ensure the
protection of public health and environment." It mandates the creation of institutional mechanism
and strategies for an effective implementation of the solid waste management program in
the country. Guided by its vision, mission, goals and objectives as a leading green institution that
strengthen the Greening CHMSC movement, it promotes and advocates ecological education in
different aspect named as Green Culture, Green Community, Green Curriculum, Green Research
and Green Technology. These five pillars are the arm of Greening CHMSC facilitated by the
Greening CHMSC Task Force that are composed of faculty and students. Greening CHMSC
conducted several campaign awareness, seminars, projects and policies namely No Straw, No
Styro and No Single-Use Plastic policy. All these efforts and commitment is anchored in the
vision “ To be a leading GREEN institution of higher learning in the global community by 2030.
The findings of the study intend to fill in the gaps in the literature on solid waste management in
terms of fostering a better understanding, forming ethical attitudes, and promoting environment-
friendly practices towards a safer, healthier, a more sustainable green institution and to be
relevant and responsive to the global challenge of a transformed world and make a significant
contribution by 2030.

Statement of the problem

This main purpose of this study to determine the level of awareness, attitudes and practice among
college students of Carlos Hilado Memorial State College among college students towards solid
waste management. Result of this study will form a basis for a new strategic plan to solve the
issues on improper waste disposal.

Specifically, the study aims:

1. What is the profile of the respondents in terms of the followimg:

1.1 Age
1.2 Gender
1.3 Course
1.4 Year level
1.5 Academic grade
2. What is the level of students’ awareness of solid waste management?
3. What are the students’ attitude toward solid waste management?
4. What are the significant relationships between students’ awareness and their attitudes
towards solid waste management?
Theoretical Framework

The study is anchored on the Reasoned Action Theory (Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975) which
stressed the relationship between behavioral intention and behavior. It argues that behavioral
intention precedes action. The behavioral intention is influenced by one's attitude towards the
action and subjective norms. The more fervent is the intention, the more likely the behavior will
be performed. Reinforcing the theoretical statement above, the theory of Planned Behavior
(Ajzen, 1991) explains that human actions are determined by person’s intention which is
influenced by his attitude in combination with the subjective norm and perceived behavioral
control. Both theories provide a framework to help explain, understand, and predict human
behaviors when individual's involvement is voluntary and self-controlled. Linking these theories
to the study, the researchers hypothesized that students' awareness of the negative consequences
of indiscriminate disposal of waste can favorably influence their attitude on how they can help to
solve the wastes problem which will subsequently be manifested in their actions of managing
their waste properly at home and in school.