Change of domestic waste content and risks for environmental health in Ankara during the COVID-19 pandemic process

The COVID-19 pandemic, which affects the whole world, has changed our consumption habits, the content and amount of domestic waste, as well as the effects it has created in many areas. It has been observed that online shopping has increased due to the increase in the time spent at home due to the quarantine measures implemented all over the world, the restriction of shopping options or forcing them to change. The share of packaging materials for household waste has also increased rapidly as a result of online shopping, as well as increasing food shopping due to the increase in time spent at home and the restriction of options for out-of-home activities. In addition, the amount of waste associated with hygiene products such as gloves, masks and disinfectants has increased exponentially. All these changes have also affected environmental health. With this research, the content and amount of domestic waste were examined depending on the consumption changes before and after the pandemic. For this, a questionnaire was applied to 500 people and 406 results were evaluated. In the light of the data obtained, it has been determined that online shopping has increased, while the proportion of food in domestic waste content has decreased, packaging products and especially plastic have increased. Increasing disposable gloves, masks, disinfectant containers and packaging materials are pushing the capacities of urban recycling centers, creating a serious pressure on the environment due to the increase in the energy requirement for both their elimination and processing.