Unequal Burdens: How Socio-Demographic Variables Shape the Environmental, Health, and Socio-Economic Effects of Illegal Waste Dumping

Illegal waste dumping (IWD) remains a major challenge for many developing municipalities, contributing to environmental degradation, public health risks, and socio-economic burdens. This study aims to assess the environmental, health, and socio-economic impacts of IWD and to examine the influence of socio-demographic variables (gender, education, age, and income) on perceived impacts. Primary data was collected through a quantitative survey of 381 participants from the Thabazimbi Local Municipality. The Mann–Whitney test was used to compare perceived IWD impacts between gender groups, and the Kruskal–Wallis test was used to compare perceived IWD impacts across education, age, and income groups. The results showed strong agreement (>80%) on the perceived environmental health and socio-economic impacts of IWD, indicating that IWD is a universal challenge across the municipality. Moreover, the statistical analysis revealed that income and education groups differed in their perceived environmental and socio-economic impacts (p < 0.05), respectively, although the differences were minimal across the impact statements. The study provides valuable insights by integrating environmental, health, and socio-economic effects of IWD across various socio-demographic groups. In doing so, municipalities can develop more sustainable waste management systems that reduce IWD and support broader sustainability objectives, including environmental protection, public health improvement, and socio-economic development.