Rising environmental awareness in Central Asia: An empirical study from Nursultan, Kazakhstan

This paper is the first comprehensive study to assess public environmental awareness on environmental issues in Nursultan (formerly known as Astana), the capital city of Kazakhstan. It employs a survey-based research methodology with a series of crossover assessments. Almost a quarter of the respondents stated that they have already begun waste separation, even though there is no penalty system if the waste is not separately collected or recycled. More or less all the respondents agreed that hazardous substances should be treated separately from other waste types. It was also found that the public perception of tap water quality is strongly related to personal experiences, which correspondingly influences the use of tap water as drinking water. As a result of the perceived water quality, bottled water is the preferred alternative drinking water option among the householders. Half of respondents recognised motor vehicles as the main cause of pollution.