Solid Waste Management in Cambodia

Solid Waste Management in Cambodia

Ran Yagasa, Rithy Uch, Phalla Sam
Copyright: © 2020 |Pages: 30
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-7998-0198-6.ch003
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Abstract

Driven by economic development, population growth, change in life style, and consumption patterns, Cambodia is faced with equally rapid increase of solid waste, with MSW disposal amount attaining 1,709,379 tons/year in 2018. Various policy instruments and legislations have been developed over the years in response to this long-existing crisis, which effectively translated into tangible improvements on the ground. But municipalities continue to suffer from weak waste management system including collection, transportation, treatment, and disposal. Resource recovery almost entirely depends on informal sector while efforts for reduce and reuse are still weak, while presenting vast opportunity if effective policies are employed and implemented. The ongoing governance reform involving functional decentralization of waste management service is being implemented although at a slow pace.
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Waste Definition And Classification

Waste Definition

Sub-decrees No. 36 on Solid Waste Management (1999) and No.113 on Waste Management (2015) provide legal definitions of waste in general, and constitute the key waste management legislation in the modern legal system of Cambodia while also supported by many subject-specific laws and regulations.

Sub-decree No. 36 defines “Solid waste” as comprising all the waste arising from human activities, including　animal waste that is discarded as useless or unwanted, while it distinguishes “solid waste” and “garbage” as follows:

  • 1.

    Solid waste refers to hard objects, hard substances, products or refuse which are useless,　disposed of, are intended to be disposed of, or required to be disposed of.

  • 2.

    Garbage is the part of solid waste which does not contain toxins or hazardous substances,　and is discarded from dwellings, public buildings, factories, markets, hotels, business　buildings, restaurants, transport facilities, recreation sites, etc.

Sub-Decree No. 113 also defines “garbage”, “Municipal Solid Waste (referred to as ‘solid waste in towns’ in the text)”, “industrial waste” and “hazardous waste” in its annex as follows:

  • 1.

    Garbage: referring to tools, equipment, products that were left or created by actions or from the everyday livelihoods of humans, not including toxic substances or hazardous waste.

  • 2.

    Solid waste in towns: referring to solid waste that was left or created by business activity or services, not including toxic substances or hazardous waste.

  • 3.

    Industrial waste: referring to solid waste that was left or created by productivity of factory or enterprise, not including toxic substances or hazardous waste.

  • 4.

    Hazardous waste: referring to solid substances, liquid, gas, radioactive substances, explosive substances, flammable substances, disease-transmitting substances, or substances that cause burning and decay, antioxidants, substances that cause poisoning, cancer, or other chemical substances that cause danger to humans, animals or damage to plants, public property, resorts, public buildings, education establishments, business activities, services, crafts, factories, agricultural activities or mining business.

Waste Classification

Figure1 illustrates the waste classification based on the key Sub-decrees above and other relevant national waste management legislations in Cambodia as of March 2019. However, literature has also discussed slightly different classifications or has pointed out the necessity to develop clear definitions and classifications (Sethy et al., 2014).

Figure 1.

Waste classification and waste management legislations of Cambodia (Adapted from Kol Mardi et al., 2018)

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