Is Municipal Solid Waste Recycling Economically Efficient?

It has traditionally been argued that recycling municipal solid waste (MSW) is usually not economically viable and that only when externalities, long-term dynamic considerations, and/or the entire product life cycle are taken into account, recycling becomes worthwhile from a social point of view. This article explores the results of a wide study conducted in Israel in the years 2000–2004. Our results reveal that recycling is optimal more often than usually claimed, even when externality considerations are ignored. The study is unique in the tools it uses to explore the efficiency of recycling: a computer-based simulation applied to an extensive database. We developed a simulation for assessing the costs of handling and treating MSW under different waste-management systems and used this simulation to explore possible cost reductions obtained by designating some of the waste (otherwise sent to landfill) to recycling. We ran the simulation on data from 79 municipalities in Israel that produce over 60% of MSW in Israel. For each municipality, we were able to arrive at an optimal method of waste management and compare the costs associated with 100% landfilling to the costs born by the municipality when some of the waste is recycled. Our results indicate that for 51% of the municipalities, it would be efficient to adopt recycling, even without accounting for externality costs. We found that by adopting recycling, municipalities would be able to reduce direct costs by an average of 11%. Through interviews conducted with representatives of municipalities, we were also able to identify obstacles to the utilization of recycling, answering in part the question of why actual recycling levels in Israel are lower than our model predicts they should be.     

Household behaviour and attitudes with respect to recycling food waste--experiences from focus groups

It is a challenge to reduce the ever-increasing flow of waste. In Norway the systems for recycling of organic waste, paper, glass, metals, etc. differ between municipalities, both with regard to organizational and to technological structures. Our hypothesis is that people's attitudes and behaviour may differ with different systems of waste management. People's behaviour and attitudes regarding (organic) waste recycling were investigated in two municipalities with differing technical and organisational systems. Data came from interviews with municipal employees, questionnaires, focus groups and multi-criteria mapping. People seem to be better informed and more positive about organic waste recycling in one of the municipalities (MH, which has recycling of organic waste) than in the other (MS, which has no such recycling). The two municipalities had similar sets of important criteria for waste management (price, environmental friendliness, easy solutions, information). Many participants stated that they had learned from the group process, though only a few reported changed preferences. The institutional context seems to be important for people's behaviour and attitudes towards waste management. This implies that people's recycling behaviour does not only depend on technical and organisational aspects, but also on institutions. These are important messages for policy makers. On an individual basis, the different systems in the two municipalities seem to affect people's stated attitudes. These differences diminish when they are in a common setting where process and dialogue stimulate new thoughts and encourage people to act more altruistically.     

Ramifications of solid waste disposal site relocation in urban areas of developing countries: a case study in Tanzania

Sanitary landfilling is considered to be the most appropriate means of final disposal of solid wastes. Currently in Tanzania, the cheapest method of developing a landfill is by making use of natural depressions or former borrow pits and mine pits. This paper examines the impacts associated with the relocation of a waste disposal site from a crude disposal site at Vingunguti to a new landfill site at New MECCO quarry in Kunduchi area, both in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The paper focuses on the fate of scavenging and solid waste recycling which are currently taking place at Vingunguti site and mining as well as food vending activities at the proposed new landfill site. Scavenging and waste recycling were found to be important sources of income for some individuals in the city. Various items collected for recycling were found to be an important source of raw materials for some industries in Dar es Salaam. A total of 94% of all the miners were entirely dependent on stone mining and crushing as a sole means of income generation, and 68% of the miners had practised this activity for between 1 and 9 years. Finally the paper recommends that, selection of a waste disposal site should favour abandoned mines or borrow pits rather than operational ones. It also recommends that, waste recycling and scavenging be accommodated in other stages of the waste stream since they can not be practised at a sanitary landfill.     

Household participation in waste recycling: Some national survey evidence from Scotland

Increasing levels of household waste have raced up national, regional and municipal environmental policy agendas around the world, especially as heavy reliance on landfill and incineration is becoming prohibitively expensive and also a high profile source of local voter dissent or vociferous NIMBY behaviour. In an attempt to reduce reliance on these options, UK local authorities have increasingly been forced to turn to recycling. This paper reports on a broad empirical study of household recycling, utilizing national survey-based evidence (drawn from over 31 000 interviews in Scotland). Hitherto, very few published empirical studies have addressed the household recycling decision using national survey data to furnish baseline evidence. For this purpose logit analysis is undertaken, using data extracted from the Scottish Household Surveys of 2000 and 2001. This work also serves as the basis for further detailed modelling of a selection of illustrative household types. After consideration of particular waste streams and the availability of different recycling schemes, the effects on the probability of recycling participation of age, income level, household composition, car ownership and local authority were analysed. While there are clear income effects, the picture regarding the impact of household composition and some other factors is more complex.     

A bioeconomic model of afforestation in Southern Ontario: Integration of fiber,carbon and municipal biosolids values

This study explores the economic attractiveness of afforestation as a strategy for the joint production of fibre, carbon storage and biosolids (treated municipal sewage sludge) disposal for municipalities in Southern and Central Ontario, Canada. We use a spatial, stochastic model, the Canadian Forest Service Afforestation Feasibility Model (CFS-AFM), to simulate a range of spatial biosolids application scenarios in hybrid poplar afforestation projects. Results suggest that such joint afforestation strategies could be financially attractive. Significant cost savings can be expected through decreases in transportation distances and avoided waste disposal fees. Sensitivity analysis is used to examine the effects of variations in critical model parameters on net present values. Our findings indicate that waste disposal savings from application of biosolids on hybrid poplar plantations combined with incentives for landowners to sequester carbon can easily compete with agricultural land rental values in some regions of Ontario. Social acceptance of this kind of activity, however, may be an impediment to adoption.     

Management of old landfills by utilizing forest and energy industry waste flows

The lack of landfill capacity, forthcoming EU waste disposal and landfill management legislation and the use of non-renewable and energy intensive natural resources for the end-treatment of old landfills increase pressures to develop new landfill management methods. This paper considers a method for the end-management of old landfills in Finland, which is based on the utilization of forest and paper industry waste flows, wastes from paper recycling (de-inking) and wastes from forest industry energy production. Fibre clay wastes from paper mills, de-inking sludges from de-inking of recovered waste paper and incineration ash from forest industry power plants serve to substitute the use of natural clay for the building of landfill structures for closed landfills. Arguably, this method is preferable to existing practices of natural clay use for landfill building, because it (1) substitutes non-renewable natural clay, (2) consumes less energy and generates less CO2 emissions than the use of natural clay, and (3) eliminates considerable amounts of wastes from paper production, paper consumption and from forest industry energy production. Some difficulties in the application of the method are considered and the waste flow utilization is incorporated into a local forest industry recycling network.     

Recycling in the USA : Vision and reality

In 1978 the US Environmental Protection Agency contracted Mathtech Incorporated to identify the impediments to recycling and evaluate their economic effects. The facilities studied represented a cross-section of recycling technologies, ownership types, geographical locations, and recovered products. It was discovered that none of the facilities was economical in the sense of providing the least-cost mode of disposal for municipal solid waste, and all of them suffered net losses in recent operations. Indications were that financial performance would improve slightly. A major deterrent to economical operations was the availability of lower-cost disposal by landfill.     

The dynamics of landfill diversion: Economic drivers, policy factors and spatial issues: Evidence from Italy using provincial panel data

Waste disposal is an issue that is becoming increasingly important in policy terms in the European Union, and in Italy, a country showing strong geographical heterogeneity in waste management. This paper analyses the process of decoupling/delinking between economic growth and landfilling trends in a framework where economic, policy, geographical elements and spatial issues are all considered as drivers behind the phenomenon. We exploit an original and very rich provincial panel dataset over 1999–2005 for the 103 Italian provinces. Evidence shows that the observed ‘absolute’ decoupling between economic growth and landfilling is driven by a mix of structural factors. Among the main factors, population density, more than the provincial income level, emerges as a crucial driver: local opportunity costs and landfill externalities matter in shaping waste policies and local commitment to a transition away from landfilling of waste (landfill diversion). However, not only structural factors are relevant. If on the one hand landfill taxes are not a significant driver of the phenomenon, waste management tools, such as separated collection for recycling, and the tariff system connected to waste services, bring about significant effect on the amount of landfilled waste. Moreover, regarding the analysis of spatial interrelations across provinces, we note that the presence of incinerators in nearby provinces increases landfill diversion, due probably to free riding behaviour or intra-provinces ‘agreements’ on waste management; this is not true for nearby landfill sites, that cause for a given province a strong lock in effect. Future research could strengthen the analysis of policy effectiveness at regional level, focusing on policy endogeneity, and the full investigation of spatial correlations in waste disposal performances.     

A generic comparison of the airborne risks to human health from landfill and incinerator disposal of municipal solid waste

A comparison of the potential risks to human health from municipal solid waste (MSW) incineration and landfill on a generic basis is attempted. For this purpose a 'worst case' approach is adopted and a number of assumptions regarding the size and activities of each waste disposal method are made. The airborne pollutants measured for an incinerator are different from those for a landfill with or without gas collection. However, based on the available information it appears that as far as airborne pollution is concerned, landfill sites without gas collection pose a potentially higher generic risk to human health than MSW incinerators performing to Environmental Agency (UK) standards. This analysis cannot be used to replace specific evaluations for a particular incinerator or a landfill site because local conditions can have a very large impact on the magnitude of risks involved.     

Environmental and economic assessment of combined biostabilization and landfill for municipal solid waste

Biostabilization can remove considerable amounts of moisture and degradable organic materials from municipal solid waste (MSW), and can therefore be an effective form of pretreatment prior to landfill. The environmental and economic impacts of two combined processes, active stage biostabilization + sanitary landfill (AL), and active and curing stage biostabilization + sanitary landfill (ACL), were compared with sanitary landfill (SL) for MSW with high moisture content. The results indicated that land requirement, leachate generation, and CH(4) emission in the ACL process decreased by 68.6%, 89.1%, and 87.6%, respectively, and the total cost was reduced by 24.1%, compared with SL. This implies that a combined biostabilization and landfill process can be an environmentally friendly and economically feasible alternative to landfill of raw MSW with high moisture content. Sensitivity analysis revealed that treatment capacity and construction costs of biostabilization and the oxidation factor of CH(4) significantly influenced the costs and benefits of the AL and ACL process at an extremely low land price. When the land price was greater than 100 USD m(-2), it became the dominating factor in determining the cost of treatment and disposal, and the total costs of ACL were reduced to less than 40% of those of SL.     

Landfill space consumption dynamics in the Lower Rio Grande Valley by grey integer programming-based games

The Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) region in South Texas emerges as a warehouse and transportation center between Central America and the US with positive growth impacts due to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). In 10 years time, a 39.8% population increase has resulted in a 25% boost in solid waste per capita disposal rate in the region. A landfill space shortage drives a need for landfill operators to understand their optimal management strategies in this highly-competitive market. Initially, a strategic plan for optimal solid waste pattern distribution minimizes net costs for cities. This is accomplished through a grey integer programming algorithm that encapsulates all uncertainty present in the solid waste system. Secondly, a series of grey integer submodels construct payoff matrices for a zero-sum two-person game. The ensuing game theoretic analysis is critical for evaluating optimal pricing strategies for tipping fees available to the most significant regional landfills (e.g. Browning-Ferris Industries (BFI) and City of Edinburg) as they compete over disposal contracts. The BFI landfill intrinsically benefits from its competitive pricing policy and central location to solid waste generators. The City of Edinburg landfill, on the other hand, wishes to secure its lucrative solid waste management revenue. It desires a gaming strategy backed by optimality that integrates ambiguity in solid waste generation, design capacity boundaries, and unitary shipping costs. Results show that a two-tiered analysis via grey integer programming-based games may pave the way for 'grey Nash equilibria' pricing tactics that will help the Edinburg landfill maintain its waste contracts.     

The economics of waste disposal in the UK

The author takes a simplified look at the structure of waste disposal costs in the UK. The immediate impression is that landfill costs are so significantly cheaper than other disposal options, on average, that considerable escalation in landfill costs, for whatever reason, would be needed to make it lose its predominance. The analysis also demonstrates that the more futuristic technologies may well have a role to play provided the initial estimates of per tonne costs are borne out by commercial ventures.     

Waste separation at home: Are Japanese municipal curbside recycling policies efficient?

Recent studies have predicted that the costs and benefits of curbside recycling programs will vary considerably across municipalities. In this paper, we examine how the characteristics of municipalities are reflected in curbside recycling policies. Our analysis of Japanese municipal data reveals that municipalities implement recycling programs that fit the demographic profiles of their residents. Municipalities with a considerable number of single-recycler households tend to implement simple waste separation programs. The labor market positions of spouses have different impacts on recycling policies. We further find that the municipalities implementing comprehensive recycling programs collect plastic bottles and containers more frequently than do other municipalities. This implies that the municipalities need to take measures to effectively execute comprehensive recycling programs after implementing them.     

Siting and Routing Assessment for Solid Waste Management Under Uncertainty Using the Grey Mini-Max Regret Criterion

Solid waste management (SWM) is at the forefront of environmental concerns in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV), South Texas. The complexity in SWM drives area decision makers to look for innovative and forward-looking solutions to address various waste management options. In decision analysis, it is not uncommon for decision makers to go by an option that may minimize the maximum regret when some determinant factors are vague, ambiguous, or unclear. This article presents an innovative optimization model using the grey mini-max regret (GMMR) integer programming algorithm to outline an optimal regional coordination of solid waste routing and possible landfill/incinerator construction under an uncertain environment. The LRGV is an ideal location to apply the GMMR model for SWM planning because of its constant urban expansion, dwindling landfill space, and insufficient data availability signifying the planning uncertainty combined with vagueness in decision-making. The results give local decision makers hedged sets of options that consider various forms of systematic and event-based uncertainty. By extending the dimension of decision-making, this may lead to identifying a variety of beneficial solutions with efficient waste routing and facility siting for the time frame of 2005 through 2010 in LRGV. The results show the ability of the GMMR model to open insightful scenario planning that can handle situational and data-driven uncertainty in a way that was previously unavailable. Research findings also indicate that the large capital investment of incineration facilities makes such an option less competitive among municipal options for landfills. It is evident that the investment from a municipal standpoint is out of the question, but possible public–private partnerships may alleviate this obstacle.     

A cost and benefit analysis of future end-of-life vehicle glazing recycling in France: A systematic approach

As with other European countries, the French automotive industry needs to improve the end-of-life vehicle (ELV) recycling rate in order to reach the minimum reuse and recovery rate required by EU directives. This paper proposes a model to investigate the potential cost and benefit of ELV glazing recycling for all value-chain stakeholders, and for the network as a whole. Key parameters of future changes, namely glass cullet price, landfill cost, network coverage and transportation costs are identified at the level of field research. A system dynamics approach is then used to simulate the net economic balance of the recycling network under different future scenarios. The simulation reveals an increase in the income and considerable cost savings as a result of the recycling network in some of future scenarios.     

The ironic compatibility of recycling practice and UK government policy

On the face of it, the 1990s have marked the transformation of the UK's waste management policy. A commitment to waste minimisation and recycling, within the terms of the internationally accepted waste hierarchy, have replaced an almost complacent defence of landfill. However, aside from the dramatic transformation of the vocabulary, the reality of local authority waste disposal has, with a few notable exceptions, been characterised more by continuity than revolution. This article suggests that the modesty of local authority recycling is best explained through an appreciation of what can be described as recycling practice. Recycling in the UK has taken a distinctive form comprising: environmentalism, entrepreneurialism and policy advocacy. The components of this practice explain both the successes and failures of local authority recycling. Despite its oppositional roots, the Conservative Government found 'recycling practice' conducive to their reliance upon a mix of aspirational targets and market-based instruments (MBIs). Advice circulated as guidance to local authorities emphasised viability as the principal criterion of scheme assessment and in such a way sustained the limited scale and ambitions of recycling practice.     

Household Demand for Waste Recycling Services

Municipalities everywhere are coping with increasing amounts of solid waste and need urgently to formulate efficient and sustainable solutions to the problem. This study examines the use of economic incentives in municipal waste management. Specifically, we address the issue of recycling, if and when this waste management option is—on social welfare grounds—a preferred solution.A number of studies have recently assessed the monetary value of the externalities of alternative solid waste management options. In the present context, these subsidies could be interpreted as the implicit value of the benefits from reducing environmental externalities associated with landfilling as perceived by local government authorities. We surmise that the difference between mean households willingness to pay (WTP) for recycling services, via the purchase of a subsidized waste disposal facility, and the above (proxy) value of externalities reflects the difference between private and public perception regarding the negative externality associated with landfilling. We believe that this information is useful in determining the level of subsidization needed (if at all) to sustain any recycling program.The study is unique in the sense that its conclusions are based on revealed household behavior when faced with increased disposal costs, as well as information on WTP responses in hypothetical but related (and, therefore, familiar) scenarios. The article also explores the influence of the subsidization schemes on recycling rates. It was found that with low levels of effort needed to participate in a curbside recycling program, households participation rates are mainly influenced by economic variables and age, and households are willing to pay a higher price for the recycling scheme. When the required effort level is relatively high, however, households would pay a lower price, and the rate is influenced mainly by their environmental commitment and by economic considerations. We found that in both cases a subsidy would be required in order to achieve an efficient level of recycling. The median price that households are willing to pay for recycling devices is found to be about NIS 370 (New Israeli Shekel, approximately $90).     

Economic comparison of recycling over-ordered fresh concrete: A case study approach

Recycling of construction material helps save the limited landfill space. Among various types of materials, concrete waste accounts of about 50% of the total waste generation. Current off-site practices for ready mixed concrete batching plant generate a significant quantity of fresh concrete waste through over-order from construction sites. The use of concrete reclaimer is one of the methods to reclaim these concrete wastes, which separates coarse aggregate, sand and cement from fresh concrete. Although there are some concrete producers in Hong Kong providing concrete reclaimers in their plants, they are only used to flush and dilute the cement slurry from the concrete, which will still be ultimately send all to dumping areas. The reluctance of most concrete producers in reclaiming aggregate from the concrete waste is due to its high cost of treatment and lack of space around the plant. Therefore, this paper puts forth a scheme of economical considerations in recycling over-ordered concrete by concrete reclaimer. A comparative study on costs and benefits between the current practices and the proposed recycling plan is examined. The study shows that the costs of the current practices in dumping over-ordered fresh concrete waste to landfill areas are double that of the proposed aggregate recycling plan. Therefore, the adoption of concrete reclaimer in recycling the over-ordered fresh concrete can provide a cost-effective method for the construction industry and help saving the environment.     

Characterization of waste materials originating from Quebec supermarkets and an assessment of recycling potential

This study evaluated, both qualitatively and quantitatively, waste materials from several major Quebec grocery stores. Averaged over nine sampling dates, cardboard, paper and wood products represented 43 and 74% of waste material, based on weight and volume, respectively while organic matter including fruits, vegetables, baked goods and meat products represented 40 and 10% of waste material based on weight and volume. Plastics, wrapping and bagging materials, represented over 7 and 13% of waste material based on weight and volume, respectively, and other recyclable waste materials such as glass, metal and various miscellaneous objects, represented 4 and 2% of waste material based on weight and volume. On average, 60.6 kg waste/employee per week was generated by the three stores. Store size was not a determining factor in the composition of grocery store waste material. These results suggest that costs associated with supermarket waste disposal may be substantially reduced by source-separation of recyclable and compostable materials while reducing pressure for incineration or landfill. Therefore, the adoption of recycling and source-separation programs, and studies to determine problems and costs associated with the implementation of such programs are recommended.     

The Effectiveness of the UK Landfill Tax

This review of the UK's landfill tax generates two main contributions to our understanding of waste management in the UK. First, the review identifies areas in which the tax is least effective and considers policy implications associated with this. In particular, the tax has failed to significantly change the behaviour of domestic waste producers and SMEs. Second, it identifies continued information gaps that might be addressed. In particular, the landfill tax is intended to contribute to a transition away from landfilling of waste, towards recovery, recycling, re-use and waste minimization. This review of available evidence finds that there is reasonable data to monitor progress towards recycling, but not for re-use or waste minimization.