Rising amounts of global waste pose a threat not only to the environment, but also for social inequalities and poor health. Exploring predictors of waste production on an individual level is therefore of high importance. There is a conglomerate of factors predicting waste production, such as income level, gender, pro-environmental orientation, individual’s education, urbanity level, availability of disposal facilities, waste pricing and level of knowledge on waste management. This literature review focused on price interventions, which charge waste depending on how many units are produced rather than a flat fee. 21 studies were selected through the online research platforms EBSCOhost®, Universitätsbibliothek der Fernuni Hagen as well as through research in articles' reference lists.
When prevention is exhaustively used or not possible, recycling gains importance. Recycling does not only have a positive effect on public health and environmental pollution, but plays a significant part in economical and other environmental terms as waste can be a resource as well. Demand for aluminium, cobalt, copper and nickel exceeds available supply and is therefore pricey, especially considering the rising impact of climate change and the transition to climate-friendly societies with solar cells, electric vehicles power storage systems, which all rely on rare materials. The last stage is disposal with the aim is to ensure an adequate discarding of remaining waste. An effective waste management, thus, has a direct impact on public health as well as on environmental pollution and resource availability.
Individual waste production makes up a quarter of total waste produced, with cosntruction & demolition (36%) and industrial (21%) being the other two major sources. Hence, reducing the individual production of waste can have a substantial impact on total waste amounts. If one adds the stages waste prevention, which alone has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 5%, and recycling to the equation, the impact becomes even stronger. Therefore, this literature review will focus on factors predicting waste production and avoidance, which influence all five stages in the waste hierarchy.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
2 Theoretical Background
2.1 Definition of Waste
2.2 Predictors
2.3 Hypotheses
3 Methodological Approach
3.1 Sources and Exlusion Criteria
3.2 List of selected studies
4 Results
4.1 Study Analyses
4.2 Evaluation of Hypotheses
5 Discussion
5.1 Main Results
5.2 Weaknesses and Limitations
5.3 Political Actions and Implications
Objectives and Research Themes
The primary objective of this literature review is to examine predictors of individual-level waste production and prevention, with a specific focus on the effectiveness of economic interventions, namely unit-based waste pricing systems.
- Analysis of socio-demographic and psychological predictors of waste production.
- Evaluation of different unit-based waste pricing (UBP) and pay-as-you-throw (PAYT) systems.
- Investigation of the relationship between unit prices and the reduction of municipal solid waste (MSW).
- Identification of successful policy measures and pricing structures for global waste management.
Excerpt from the Book
1 Introduction
In Mumbai, in 2027, a controversial centenary is to be expected. In 1927 the Deonar dump site was set up, covering some 132 ha, handling up to 9,000 metric tonnes of waste – every single day (Baliga, 2011). Through multiple fires and gas concentration, the adjacent part of the city is the most polluted area (of an already highly polluted city), schools have to shut down and infant mortality is more than double the rate than in the rest of Mumbai (“Smog Shuts Down Schools in Mumbai”, 2016). This exemplifies the health risks, environmental pollution as well as the unjust regional distribution of waste.
Not producing and preventing waste, hence, is of crucial importance. However, global waste generation is expected to rise by 68% by 2050, based on 2016 levels, according to (Kaza, Silpa et al., 2018). Roughly one third of global garbage is disposed of in open dump sites (Kaza, Silpa et al., 2018). The issue is global, for instance shown by the fact that regions where waste is mainly produced (ie. high GDP countries) are not the ones, where the world's biggest dump sites are located (ie. low GDP countries) (Wilson, 2015). In 2018 the US, Japan and Germany alone account for 47% of global plastic waste exports, with Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam being the main importers (Greenpeace, 2019). Research indicates a positive correlation between population and size of the dump site (Wilson, 2015), exposing more inhabitants to health risks.
According to the EU waste hierarchy in figure 1 (Allesch & Brunner, 2014) preventing waste in the first place is the main priority when reducing waste, before preparing for re-use, recycling, other recovery, disposal as subsequent stages.
Summary of Chapters
1 Introduction: This chapter highlights the growing global crisis of waste management and introduces the importance of the waste hierarchy in minimizing environmental impacts and health risks.
2 Theoretical Background: This section defines waste and municipal solid waste while exploring various socio-demographic and economic predictors that influence individual waste production behavior.
3 Methodological Approach: This chapter details the systematic literature search performed using major research platforms and defines the strict inclusion and exclusion criteria for the 21 selected studies.
4 Results: This chapter presents a detailed analysis of all 21 reviewed studies and evaluates the three initial hypotheses regarding the impact of unit-based pricing on waste reduction.
5 Discussion: This section summarizes the findings regarding pricing effectiveness, addresses limitations such as sample sizes or illegal dumping, and proposes political implications for future waste management.
Keywords
waste predictors, unit-based pricing, weight-based pricing, PAYT, waste management systems, municipal solid waste, environmental policy, waste generation, circular economy, waste reduction, price elasticity, household waste, landfill prevention.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
The paper focuses on identifying predictors of individual-level waste production and evaluates how different economic waste pricing systems impact the reduction of municipal solid waste.
What are the primary thematic areas covered?
The work covers waste definitions, predictors like socio-demographics and psychological factors, economic interventions via unit-based pricing, and the practical application of the EU waste hierarchy.
What is the central research goal?
The goal is to determine if and how specific unit-based pricing (UBP) schemes effectively incentivize lower waste generation at a household level.
Which scientific method was applied for this investigation?
The author conducted a systematic literature review following PRISMA guidelines, identifying 21 relevant scholarly articles based on predefined search criteria within international research databases.
What is covered in the main section of the document?
The main section consists of a detailed analysis of 21 unique studies concerning waste management policies, followed by an evaluation of the author's initial hypotheses based on the compiled data.
Which keywords best characterize this academic work?
Key terms include unit-based pricing, weight-based pricing (WBP), pay-as-you-throw (PAYT), municipal solid waste (MSW), and circular economy strategies.
Does the paper specifically distinguish between weight-based and volume-based pricing?
Yes, the review highlights that weight-based pricing (WBP) generally shows a stronger impact on reducing waste compared to other forms of unit-based pricing like volume-based or bag-based systems.
What conclusion does the author reach regarding the effectiveness of raising prices on waste?
The author concludes that while raising prices generally leads to less waste, this effect is limited; at very high price levels, the reduction rate might decrease, indicating a non-linear relationship.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Jacob Kähler (Autor:in), 2023, Predictors of Waste Production and Waste Prevention, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1403246
