TITLE:
Transforming Rural Environmental Governance in China: Linking Farmers’ Participation, Policy Mechanisms, and Infrastructure Conditions
AUTHORS:
Han Li, Nan Zhang, Siyu Chen, Shi Yin
KEYWORDS:
Rural Household Waste, Source Separation and Reduction, Willingness to Participate
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.12 No.8,
August
22,
2025
ABSTRACT: This study focuses on farmers’ willingness to participate in the source separation and reduction of rural household waste, aiming to resolve the dilemma of “government enthusiasm versus farmers’ apathy” in rural household waste governance, promote the transformation of the governance model from administrative dominance to endogenous drive, and provide a reference for the modernization of rural environmental governance. By analyzing the current situation of rural household waste generation and treatment, the characteristics of farmers’ participation, the policy environment, and infrastructure, this study identifies key governance issues and reveals the core factors affecting farmers’ willingness and behavior to participate through empirical data. The results show that: (1) There is a significant inconsistency between rural households’ willingness and behavior in waste sorting. 72% of rural households explicitly express their willingness to participate, but the actual implementation rate is only 31%, which is affected by differences in individual knowledge, income, and age. (2) The implementation of policies lacks interdisciplinary theoretical integration. The proportion of flexible expressions in national-level policies is 63%, while the proportion of rigid clauses in local rules rises to 47%. (3) There are obvious deficiencies in infrastructure and technology, with uneven regional coverage. The error rate of manual garbage data statistics reaches 23%, leading to data fragmentation and resource waste. This study provides targeted paths for improving farmers’ participation in waste sorting and optimizing rural environmental governance strategies. It emphasizes the need to consider the heterogeneous characteristics of farmers, balance policy flexibility and technical adaptability, and build a multi-stakeholder collaborative governance system.