Participatory management of waste disposal.

The general objective of this study was to develop a sustainable waste disposal management model in Yom riverside communities by creating a sense of ownership in the project among the villagers and encourage the community to identify problems based on their socio-cultural background. The participatory approach was applied in developing a continual learning process between the researcher and stakeholders. The Tub Phueng community of Si Samrong, Sukhothai Province was selected as the location for this study. From the population of 240 households in the area, 40 stakeholders were selected to be on the research team. The team found that the waste in this community was comprised of 4 categories: 1. Occupation: discarded insecticide containers used for farming activities; 2. Consumption: plastic bags and wrappers form pre-packed foods; 3. Traditional activities: after holding ceremonies and festivities, the waste was dumped in the river; and 4. Environmental hygiene: waste water from washing, bathing, toileting, cooking and cleaning was directly drained into the Yom River. The sustainable waste disposal model developed to manage these problems included building simple waste-water treatment wells, digging garbage holes, prosecuting people who throw garbage into the river, withdrawing privileges from people who throw garbage into the river, and establishing a garbage center. Most of the villagers were satisfied with the proposed model, looked forward to the expected positive changes, and thought this kind of solution would be easy to put into practice.