Disposición a pagar por un sistema integral de residuos sólidos urbanos en poblaciones Semi-urbanas

In Yucatan, the transition from rural to semi-urban communities has occurred mainly in the municipality seats; this transition comes with the problems of waste management. The municipalities oversee the Integral Urban SolidWaste Management (IUSWM); but in recent years, the public-private partnership for waste management has proved to be an effective strategy. There are few studies on the IUSWM in rural or semi-urban areas and the users’ willingness to pay, information that would help public policymakers to design adequate plans and programs for its management. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to determine the socioeconomic factors associated with the willingness to pay for the IUSWM of users in semi-urban municipalities of Yucatan. A total of 1,144 interviews were conducted in 6 semi-urban localities in Yucatan, and the data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics with a Tobit regression econometric model. 69.75% of the surveyed users declared that they were willing to pay an average of 17.65 Mexican pesos (0.85 U.S. dollars) for the integral urban solid waste management. The willingness to pay decreases when the Mayan language predominates among the member of the household, and when they have fewer tangible assets and rooms. There are cultural and social factors rooted in solid waste collection, this integrated system may be accompanied by other types of economic incentives to modify consumers’ behavior towards something more beneficial for the environment, such as the homes’ income.La transición de lo rural a lo semiurbano en Yucatán ocurre principalmente en las cabeceras municipales, y trae consigo problemas de gestión de los residuos. Las autoridades municipales son las encargadas del Manejo Integral de los Residuos Sólidos Urbanos (MIRSU); pero en últimos años, la asociación entre el sector público y el privado para la gestión de los residuos resulta una estrategia eficaz. Existen pocos estudios sobre el MIRSU en zonas rurales o semiurbanas y la disposición a pagar de los usuarios, información que ayudaría a los creadores de política pública a diseñar planes y programas adecuados para su gestión. Por lo tanto, el objetivo de este estudio es determinar los factores socioeconómicos asociados a la disposición a pagar por el MIRSU de los usuarios de municipios semiurbanos de Yucatán. Se realizaron 1,144 encuestas en 6 localidades semiurbanas de Yucatán, los datos se analizaron mediante estadística descriptiva e inferencial con un modelo econométrico de regresión Tobit. El 69,75% de los usuarios encuestados declararon estar dispuestos a pagar por el manejo integral de los residuos sólidos un monto promedio de 17,65 pesos mexicanos (0,85 dólares estadounidenses). La disposición a pagar disminuye cuando predomina el idioma maya, y mientras menos activos físicos y habitaciones tenga el hogar. Existen elementos culturales y sociales arraigados en la recolección de residuos sólidos, este sistema integral puede ir acompañado de otro tipo de incentivos económicos para modificar el comportamiento de los consumidores hacia algo más beneficioso para el medio ambiente, tal como el ingreso familiar

The Willingness to pay for urban solid waste integral system in Semi-urban populations.

In Yucatan, the transition from rural to semi-urban communities has occurred mainly in the municipality seats; this transition comes with the problems of waste management. The municipalities oversee the Integral Urban SolidWaste Management (IUSWM); but in recent years, the public-private partnership for waste management has proved to be an effective strategy. There are few studies on the IUSWM in rural or semi-urban areas and the users’ willingness to pay, information that would help public policymakers to design adequate plans and programs for its management. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to determine the socioeconomic factors associated with the willingness to pay for the IUSWM of users in semi-urban municipalities of Yucatan. A total of 1,144 interviews were conducted in 6 semi-urban localities in Yucatan, and the data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics with a Tobit regression econometric model. 69.75% of the surveyed users declared that they were willing to pay an average of 17.65 Mexican pesos (0.85 U.S. dollars) for the integral urban solid waste management. The willingness to pay decreases when the Mayan language predominates among the member of the household, and when they have fewer tangible assets and rooms. There are cultural and social factors rooted in solid waste collection, this integrated system may be accompanied by other types of economic incentives to modify consumers’ behavior towards something more beneficial for the environment, such as the homes’ income