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CHAPTER | INTRODUCTION Background of the Study Solid waste is any abandoned residential, commercial, non-hazardous institutional and industrial garbage, street sweepings, building debris, agricultural waste, and other non-hazardouson-toxic solid waste, according to Republic Act No. 9003. It is also clear that the production of solid waste is rising elsewhere. Solid waste management is therefore essential. The control of the generation, storage, collection, transfer and transport, processing, and disposal of solid wastes in a way that complies with the highest standards of engineering, economics, public health, conservation, aesthetics, and other environmental considerations while also being sensitive to public opinion is known as solid waste management. But solid waste management is frequently disregarded (Alam and Qiao, 2020). Concerns about solid waste management in the Philippines include improper trash disposal, ineffective waste collection, and a shortage of disposal facilities (Pintor and Ancheta, 2022). Furthermore, improper solid waste management can lead to many socioeconomic issues, environmental issues as air pollution and flooding, water and soil contamination, and health risks for local residents (Gebrekidan, et al, 2024). According to the World Bank (2020), global waste generation will increase from 2.01 billion tons in 2016 to 3.40 billion tons by 2050, a 70% increase. In Asia, municipal solid waste generation is estimated at over 1 million tons per day, with a projected increase to 1.8 million tons by 2025 (Mutelo, 2023). European countries produce an average of 483 kg of municipal solid waste per person annually, with about 45% of that recycled or composted (Magrini et al., 2020). However, in the United States and China, similar problems in solid waste management persist, even with more advanced Bulanao, Tabuk City, Kalinga infrastructure (Basuhi et al., 2021; Pheakdey et al., 2022). In the Philippines, poor waste segregation, weak enforcement, and low public participation hinder progress (Alam Qiao, 2020). Bueta (2022) even cited the Philippines as one of the world's top plastic polluters. Despite the inclusion of environmental topics in school curricula, Dela Cruz (2020) found that implementation is sporadic, and public understanding remains low. In 2024, Tabuk City disposed of a total of 5,439.10 tons of residual waste at its sanitary landfill, averaging about 469 tons per month or 16.86 tons per day. This marked a notable rise in waste volume, largely caused by the opening of new establishments. The waste was managed at the engineered sanitary landfill situated in Barangay Dilag. (Herald Express, 2024).