Economic Variables Affecting the Bids of Households for an Improved Environmental Quality In The University Of Eastern Philippines

Abstract

The  University of Eastern Philippines (UEP) campus is located  three kilometers east of the capital town of Catarman, Northern Samar and occupies an mm,mmhl[[[[llarea of  419 hectares.  A total of 63.8 hectares is its residential area, where its faculty, employees and students mostly reside with an estimated population of 7,000.  Considered a University town, it consists of three distinct barangays, namely: Barangay Zone 1, Zone II, and Zone III.  The populaton in the universty campus is growing and it does not have a sanitary landfill to dispose the garbage properly.  Thus, residents has to resort to dumping their wastes in an open dumpsite, which is located in Catarman, Northern Samar. The present solid waste management system of the University  of Eastern Philippines needs an immediate solution to its pollution.  Based on economist’s point of view, pollution is a kind of externality that the polluter should have to take with responsibility.  It should not be solved using only the biophysical components, but it should consider the economic aspect so the polluter should have to pay the cost of abatement if pollution is to be eliminated.  Because pollution is an economic problem, it has to be priced so that the polluter has to take responsibility for it.  Hence, this study analyzed  the economic factors affecting the bids of households for an improved environmental sanitation in the University of Eastern Philippines.