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Phú Phong town, Tây Sơn district & Binh Định town, An Nhơn district

Binh Định province, Viêt Nam

14.12.2011

A socio-anthropological research on waste management in Vietnam

Mikaëla LE MEURMaster’s degree “Anthropology of social dynamics and development”

Université de Provence Aix-Marseille 1 (France)

Université Libre de Bruxelles (Belgium)

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Objectives of the presentation

� Present the activities of a field research of 4 months

� Present « raw » data

� Present key issues for a future indepth analysis

� Araise a reflexion on solid waste and waste water issues

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Methology

� Empirical research : � Several stays in local people’s house :

� Observation, participation, perception of the field

� Let the main issues come up (less preconceived ideas as possible)

� Informal and long dicussions� Semi-directed interviews (no questionnaires)

� Get to know what people want to say, not only what we want to know

� Qualitative enquiry:� No sample, no numbers, no statistics… BUT

� Examplification : experiences, stories from inhabitants� In depth knowledge on some specific issues

� Comprehensive research: � Stakeholder analysis

� Quantitiy and diversity of interviews : different social, economical, age status…

� Spatial analysis

=> Feedback from the field

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The field : two changing towns

� Phú Phong & Binh Định � Biggest towns in two districts

� Current entitlement to become provincial towns

�Binh Định :� Higher density, higher potential incomes, higher

geographical constraints

� Two big problems : Tran Phu street ; the market

� Phu Phong :

� Lower density, rural areas, longer distances : waste problem is more diffuse

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Satellite view of Binh Dinh town(google maps)

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Habited areas in Binh Dinh commune

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Satellite view of Phu Phong commune(google maps)

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Habited areas in Phu Phong town

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Daily practices of inhabitants

� « Clean waste » (branches, leaves, plastic bags…) vs « Dirty waste » (leftover, dead animals) (Binh Dinh, interview 8.12.2011)

� Burning waste :

� still very used, also for plastic bags in rural areas (sometimes in centers too)

� Burying waste

� Even used to level up the land – building houses without cleaning the land

� Feeding animals with left over : a rural practice

� Waste separation :

� only recyclable but quite widespreadpractice

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Waste collection and cleaning servicesPerception from households

� The collection is not regular

� Reasons :

� Bad quality of trucks (breakdowns)

� Not enough trucks, long distances

� Low collection fee

� Problems :

� Waiting waste : bags often damaged because of animals, rain…)

� Basket/bag issue : no care from the collectors

� Fee collection and participation

� Price is in general perceived as reasonable

(if the service reaches the house ! Not if too long distance)

� In the new areas, starting is difficult : lower quality// new fee.

� Binh Dinh town : deficit of the cooperative engender a plan to double the price (households who know this information don’t agree with it because the quality of the service doesn’t improve enough)

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Cleaning streets

� Public streets (with public buildings)

� Are swept regularly by the compagny/cooperative of Waste coll.

� Lower care from the people when theyknow a sweeper comes ?

� Other streets (majority of the tows)

� Sweeping relies on the families (clean only in front of their houses)

� Problem : no house, no sweeping

� Need good social link and good relationships between neighbours

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Markets : a particular waste issue

« Anyway, markets are never clean, are they? » (Binh Dinh, interview 22.09.2011)

� Markets are at crossroads of all activities

� Many products (especially organic)

� Many people come every day (buyers and sellers)

� They don’t live in the area so they don’t care as much as neighbours for the environment

� Two institutions must cooperate :

� Market management board : inside

� Waste collection : outside

� Where is the borderline between both

responsibilities?

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An active economical sector : the recyclable waste dealers

� The collectors :

� Poor ladies, cycle as far as they can

� The local byers :

� Family enterprises

� Some young people with university diplomas (accountant in Binh Dinh)

� Some own a truck (HCMC, Quy Nhon, Danang)

� Starting local treatment (Dap Da)

� Problem : to many intermediaries so income of the people at the end of the chain is very low

� Interviewees deplore the lack of help and consideration from public authorities

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Rural examples

� An « eco-firendly » familylivestock farming (~ 30 pigs)

� Collect left-over from restaurants and a few families

� Cook left-over to feed the pigs

� Leafs, coconuts, branches used as combustible (even plastic bags are burnt)

� Sewage from pigs and from the house is treated by the biogaz system and aliment the fire for cooking

« We don’t produce any waste ! »

(Phu Phong, interview 1.10.2011)

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Pollution issues

� The pollution is always a problem of otherness :

� Pollution because : « people come at night » ; « people fromthe alleys »; « people from other communes »; « […] otherresidential areas »; « farmers… » etc.

� City people have a bad perception of the farmers

� Urban/Rural habit :

� Rural habit not necessarely unfriendly with environment but generally not adapted when population density raises

� Urban habit : relies to much on waste collection and if wastecollection is not perfect, people engender a big pollution

� Waste is what you move away, you keep off, out of sight

� in front of their neighbors’ house, at the end of the street but there’s always someone at the end of the road…

� Potential conflicts in the neighborhood

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Pollution issues

� Rivers, canals, ponds…

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Water pollution in Phu Phong town

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Water pollution in Binh Dinh town

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Pollution issues

� Sewage system � Lack of sewage canals

� Lack of toilets in rural areas

� Problem of sewage from animals (few biogaz)

� Even if there is a sewage system : the waste water goes directly to the fields, rivers, canals witouth treatment

� Lack of public toilets (Phu Phong market)

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The margins

� Growing towns

� New residential areas

� Hamlets added recently to the communes

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Phu Phong’s margins

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The margins

� Waste collection service by truck� Dependency on the quality of the roads

� Alleys : urban margins still have no cimentized roads

� Long distances

� Higher and higher density � Even rural areas

� High concentration of waste

� « unhabited land » or vacant land (graveyards, unallocated plots of land) : no care

These margins are at stake and have to focus more attention !

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Opportunities

� Mesophilic bin and biopod : � Good reception of one of the mesophilic bin in Binh Dinh

� Neighboors interested, tried to build their own with different material

� Alleys in urban centers : no waste collection reaches (no truck, rarely pushcarts)

� But : close relationship among the neighbours

� Informal women (or men) gathering (tea, coffe, discussions), a good unit?

� Awareness raising : � Waste issue and cleanness of roads is a collective issue

� Need discussions among neighbours to let the problems come up

� More concern about little daily problems than abstract global issues

� Make the most of existing good examples :

� Organising visits of the « Zero waste » livestook farming etc.

� Supporting local initatives is an opportunity to reduce the burden of public policies (budget etc.)

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People are aware of environment and want to discuss !