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The economics of household waste management: a review

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  • Choe, Chongwoo
  • Fraser, Iain

Abstract

In recent years reducing the amount of waste generated by households has become an important policy issue in industrialised economies. It is no longer acceptable to discard waste without concern for environmental and natural resource issues. In an effort to reduce household waste various policy instruments such as kerbside charges, deposit‐refund schemes, integrated sales tax exemptions and virgin material taxes, have been proposed and/or implemented. This article reviews the economics literature that has addressed household waste management. It is argued that a comprehensive modelling framework is necessary if the complex policy environment is to be accurately described.

Suggested Citation

  • Choe, Chongwoo & Fraser, Iain, 1998. "The economics of household waste management: a review," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 42(3), pages 1-34.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:aareaj:117277
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.117277
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    Cited by:

    1. Francesco Nicolli, 2012. "Convergence of waste-related indicators of environmental quality in Italy," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 14(4), pages 383-401, October.
    2. Jannett Highfill & Michael McAsey, 2001. "Landfilling Versus ``Backstop'' Recycling When Income Is Growing," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 19(1), pages 37-52, May.
    3. Hilary Nixon & Jean-Daniel Saphores, 2009. "Information and the decision to recycle: results from a survey of US households," Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(2), pages 257-277.
    4. Paul Missios & Ida Ferrara, 2012. "Does Waste Management Policy Crowd out Social and Moral Motives for Recycling?," Working Papers 031, Ryerson University, Department of Economics.
    5. Choe, Chongwoo & Fraser, Iain, 1999. "An Economic Analysis of Household Waste Management," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 38(2), pages 234-246, September.
    6. Damien BROUSSOLLE, 2017. "Quel Systeme Incitatif Realiste Pour La Politique De Reduction Des Dechets Menagers ? Enseignements Tires De La Litterature Economique Et Du Cas Français / What Workable Incentive Scheme For The Reduc," Working Papers of LaRGE Research Center 2017-11, Laboratoire de Recherche en Gestion et Economie (LaRGE), Université de Strasbourg.
    7. Timothy K. M. Beatty & Peter Berck & Jay P. Shimshack, 2007. "Curbside Recycling In The Presence Of Alternatives," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 45(4), pages 739-755, October.
    8. Carlo Reggiani & Francesco Silvestri, 2018. "Municipal Solid Waste, Market Competition and the EU Policy," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 71(2), pages 457-474, October.
    9. Nahman, A. & Godfrey, L., 2010. "Economic instruments for solid waste management in South Africa: Opportunities and constraints," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 54(8), pages 521-531.
    10. Francesco Silvestri, 2019. "Direct and indirect effects of EU Self Sufficiency Principle on Municipal Waste Management: A theoretical approach," ECONOMIA PUBBLICA, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2019(1), pages 89-98.
    11. van den Bergh, Jeroen C.J.M., 2008. "Environmental regulation of households: An empirical review of economic and psychological factors," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 66(4), pages 559-574, July.
    12. Caplan, Arthur J. & Grijalva, Therese C. & Jakus, Paul M., 2002. "Waste not or want not? A contingent ranking analysis of curbside waste disposal options," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(2-3), pages 185-197, December.
    13. Gionata Castaldi & Grazia Cecere & Mariangela Zoli, 2021. "“Smoke on the beach”: on the use of economic vs behavioral policies to reduce environmental pollution by cigarette littering," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 38(3), pages 1025-1048, October.
    14. De Silva, Lihini & Taylor, Rebecca, 2021. "If you build it, they will compost: The effects of municipal composting services on household waste generation," 2021 Annual Meeting, August 1-3, Austin, Texas 313874, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    15. Francesco Silvestri, 2017. "Competition and environmental quality as conflicting objectives: the case of the European municipal waste industry," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 34(3), pages 491-513, December.

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