Electronic Waste (E-Waste) Management at Selected Colleges of the Bulacan State University: Perspectives for Program Development

This action research explored the various issues of electronic waste (e-waste) at the Bulacan State University (BSU) with the end view of promoting awareness, education, and proper e-waste disposal. This research outlined the complex issues that surround e-waste, its negative effects of its improper disposal and policy recommendations to implement an effective e-waste management system in the University. The study covered the 114 rooms in four (4) selected colleges in the BSU Main Campus. The main survey instrument used in this study is standardized e-waste survey instrument as used in a previous study of the University of Edinburgh, Study on the Disposal of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), 2007. The said instrument was slightly modified to fit the research locale of the study. Based on the results of this study, the respondents are fully aware of regarding the presence of e-waste in the University. The study also found that there are a lot of electronic equipments in the University, and for this reason, there is also a considerable amount of e-waste being generated. The respondents also practiced only two e-waste disposal methods, namely: 1) store at the warehouse and 2) hand over to e-waste collectors. On the basis of the foregoing significant findings and conclusions of this study, the following recommendations are offered: 1) the school should sponsor seminars regarding proper e-waste management and disposal for students, faculty and staff; 2) teachers are encouraged to inculcate positive values to their students in terms of caring for the environment through proper e-waste disposal; 3) the school administration may also consider the implementation of the proposed e-waste inventory management system so as to further improve the current practices in the University, making it more responsive to the challenges of today.