Solid Waste Management- Mismanagement from Houseboats of Dal Lake: Assessing Strategies for Effective Waste Reduction and Resource Recovery

The current study set out to evaluate and examine the difficulties faced by houseboat owners in solid waste management as well as possible solutions to these difficulties. The study was conducted at four sites of Dal Lake: Lakut Dal, Bod Dal, Gagribal, and Nigeen Lake. A list of registered houseboats was acquired from the Lake Conservation Management Authority (LCMA) in 2023 indicates that there are 950 houseboats in Dal Lake. Data were gathered using a structured interview schedule. A sample of 100 houseboats, 25 from each site, was selected using stratified random selection; this represents about 10.5% of the total population. The study found that the restrictions faced by houseboat owners differed depending on how easily LCMA services could be accessed at each location. The absence of a nearby color-coded waste facility was cited by 92% of houseboat owners in Site 1 as their main concern. Site 2's outcomes were comparable, the absence of consistent (weekly) solid trash collection services being identified by 84% of houseboat owners as their main challenge, 88% of site 3 houseboat owners cited the absence of solid trash collection services provided by LCMA, and 56% of site 4 houseboat owners said they were happy with the existing collection services. Nonetheless, the largest obstacle faced by 40% of houseboat owners is the absence of regular garbage collection services. The houseboat owners in Dal Lake nevertheless face several challenges on a daily basis, which are discussed in more depth.