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Mon, Nov 25, 2024 | Jumada al-Awwal 23, 1446 | DXB
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UAE: Over one-third of households collect and separate waste
Plastic and food waste are on par as the primary material discarded in household waste in the Middle East, according to a survey
Photo used for representational purpose
More than one-third – 34 per cent – of UAE households collect and separate waste. At the same time, more than half – 53 per cent – of residents collect and don’t separate the waste, according to a new survey released by global pollster Gallup.
The study revealed that six per cent of UAE households did not collect, but separated the waste while 8 per cent neither collected nor separated the waste.
It found that plastic (42 per cent) and food waste (43 per cent ) are on par as the primary material discarded in household waste in the Middle East. However, the UAE skewed towards plastic waste (53 per cent) compared to the average for the region.
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In the waste collected and separated category, the UAE is ranked second in the Middle East after Israel where 43 per cent of households carry out this activity. The Emirates is ranked fourth after Kuwait, Palestine and Turkey in the sub-index of waste collected and not separated.
Covering 147,000 interviews in 142 countries and territories, the study is based on data on waste disposal from the latest edition of the World Risk Poll, produced by Lloyd’s Register Foundation in consultation with waste management experts from the United Nations Environment Programme and Engineering X.
In the Middle East, an average of 22 per cent of household waste is collected and separated, compared to 42 per cent that is collected not separated, 10 per cent not collected but separated, and 26 per cent that is not collected and not separated.
Just under two-thirds – 64 per cent – of households in the Middle East have their waste collected either by government, private companies or community groups.
In total, 12 per cent of people in the Middle East live in households that either burn (7 per cent) or throw their waste outside (4 per cent).
In high-income countries, 71 per cent of household waste is collected and separated, while 15 per cent is collected but not separated.
“Safe and sustainable waste disposal is a form of critical infrastructure, whether for household waste or the decommissioning of major engineering projects. What type of waste we generate and how we dispose of it matters, impacting air quality and health, the safety of the people who work with our waste, and the environment, particularly if it ends up in our oceans,” said Nancy Hey, director of evidence and insight at Lloyd’s Register Foundation.
She added that dangerous practices such as open burning occur where people do not have any viable alternatives, and so there must be investment in better collection and processing infrastructure in those countries and regions where little official collection or separation currently takes place.
“Now, we hope policymakers and communities will be able to use our data to start engineering long-term, systemic change,” added Hey.
| Middle East | Collected and separated | Collected, not separated | Not collected, but separated | Not collected, not separated |
| Kuwait | 23 | 66 | 1 | 9 |
| Palestine | 23 | 65 | 4 | 8 |
| Turkey | 20 | 54 | 2 | 23 |
| UAE | 34 | 53 | 6 | 8 |
| Israel | 43 | 51 | 2 | 4 |
| Lebanon | 12 | 37 | 4 | 47 |
| Saudi Arabia | 31 | 36 | 11 | 22 |
| Bahrain | 27 | 36 | 18 | 19 |
| Iraq | 27 | 33 | 24 | 16 |
| Jordan | 11 | 21 | 48 | 48 |
| Yemen | 2 | 15 | 25 | 58 |
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Waheed Abbas
Waheed Abbas is Assistant Editor, covering real estate, aviation and other business stories that directly affect the lives of UAE consumers. He frequently reports human interest stories, too.
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