IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/recore/v75y2013icp32-40.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Examining recycling container attributes and household recycling practices

Author

Listed:
  • Lane, Gordon W.S.
  • Wagner, Travis P.

Abstract

This paper explores the impact of recycling container attributes on household recycling practices in municipal recycling programs. While there is little in the academic literature on the specific relevance of container design on recycling programs, unpublished data and gray literature suggest factors such as container size, type, and color can impact recycling rates. Because municipal recycling program design decisions likely are based on unpublished data and gray literature—much in the form of municipal-level reports written by consultants—we review these sources and place them in the context of academic literature. Additionally, we present new data on current program designs from a nationwide survey of US municipal and county solid waste professionals. Anecdotes from the survey confirm findings of previously published studies that have correlated larger recycling containers and the use of wheeled recycling containers with greater recycling rates. However, data on the direct effect of each of these factors and container color remains elusive due to a lack of controlled studies.

Suggested Citation

  • Lane, Gordon W.S. & Wagner, Travis P., 2013. "Examining recycling container attributes and household recycling practices," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 32-40.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:recore:v:75:y:2013:i:c:p:32-40
    DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2013.03.005
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S092134491300061X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.resconrec.2013.03.005?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jakus, Paul M. & Tiller, Kelly & Park, William M., 1997. "Explaining Rural Household Participation In Recycling," Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Southern Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 29(1), pages 1-8, July.
    2. Martin, M. & Williams, I.D. & Clark, M., 2006. "Social, cultural and structural influences on household waste recycling: A case study," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 357-395.
    3. Amy W. Ando & Anne Y. Gosselin, 2005. "Recycling in Multifamily Dwellings: Does Convenience Matter?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 43(2), pages 426-438, April.
    4. 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.
    5. Sidique, Shaufique F. & Lupi, Frank & Joshi, Satish V., 2010. "The effects of behavior and attitudes on drop-off recycling activities," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 54(3), pages 163-170.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Waite, Steve & Cox, Paul & Tudor, Terry, 2015. "Strategies for local authorities to achieve the EU 2020 50% recycling, reuse and composting target: A case study of England," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 105(PA), pages 18-28.
    2. Klaiman, Kimberly & Ortega, David L. & Garnache, Cloé, 2016. "Consumer preferences and demand for packaging material and recyclability," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 1-8.
    3. Willman, Kenneth W., 2015. "Information sharing and curbside recycling: A pilot study to evaluate the value of door-to-door distribution of informational literature," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 104(PA), pages 162-171.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Saphores, Jean-Daniel M. & Nixon, Hilary, 2014. "How effective are current household recycling policies? Results from a national survey of U.S. households," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 92(C), pages 1-10.
    2. López-Mosquera, Natalia & Lera-López, Fernando & Sánchez, Mercedes, 2015. "Key factors to explain recycling, car use and environmentally responsible purchase behaviors: A comparative perspective," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 99(C), pages 29-39.
    3. Muise, Isaac & Adams, Michelle & Côté, Ray & Price, G.W., 2016. "Attitudes to the recovery and recycling of agricultural plastics waste: A case study of Nova Scotia, Canada," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 137-145.
    4. Matsumoto, Shigeru, 2011. "Waste separation at home: Are Japanese municipal curbside recycling policies efficient?," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 55(3), pages 325-334.
    5. Martinho, Graça & Pires, Ana & Portela, Gonçalo & Fonseca, Miguel, 2015. "Factors affecting consumers’ choices concerning sustainable packaging during product purchase and recycling," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 58-68.
    6. Struk, Michal, 2017. "Distance and incentives matter: The separation of recyclable municipal waste," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 155-162.
    7. Bernstad, A. & la Cour Jansen, J. & Aspegren, A., 2013. "Door-stepping as a strategy for improved food waste recycling behaviour – Evaluation of a full-scale experiment," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 94-103.
    8. Kenichi SHIMAMOTO, 2019. "Determining Factors Of Waste Management In Japan," Theoretical and Empirical Researches in Urban Management, Research Centre in Public Administration and Public Services, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 14(3), pages 62-76, August.
    9. Bouvier, Rachel & Wagner, Travis, 2011. "The influence of collection facility attributes on household collection rates of electronic waste: The case of televisions and computer monitors," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 55(11), pages 1051-1059.
    10. Brian Chi-ang Lin & Siqi Zheng & Marie Briguglio, 2016. "Household Cooperation In Waste Management: Initial Conditions And Intervention," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(3), pages 497-525, July.
    11. Babaei, Ali Akbar & Alavi, Nadali & Goudarzi, Gholamreza & Teymouri, Pari & Ahmadi, Kambiz & Rafiee, Mohammad, 2015. "Household recycling knowledge, attitudes and practices towards solid waste management," Resources, Conservation & Recycling, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 94-100.
    12. 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.
    13. Park, William M. & Lamons, Kevin S. & Roberts, Roland K., 1998. "An Analysis Of Factors Associated With Composting Behavior At The Household Level," 1998 Annual meeting, August 2-5, Salt Lake City, UT 20836, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    14. Hua Zhang & Zong-Guo Wen, 2014. "Residents’ Household Solid Waste (HSW) Source Separation Activity: A Case Study of Suzhou, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 6(9), pages 1-21, September.
    15. Helén Williams & Fredrik Wikström & Katarina Wetter-Edman & Per Kristensson, 2018. "Decisions on Recycling or Waste: How Packaging Functions Affect the Fate of Used Packaging in Selected Swedish Households," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-19, December.
    16. Guang Han & Ping Zhai & Liqun Zhu & Kongqing Li, 2023. "Economic Incentives, Reputation Incentives, and Rural Residents’ Participation in Household Waste Classification: Evidence from Jiangsu, China," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-15, October.
    17. Chuanhui Liao & Hui Li, 2019. "Environmental Education, Knowledge, and High School Students’ Intention toward Separation of Solid Waste on Campus," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-15, May.
    18. D'Amato, Alessio & Giaccherini, Matilde & Zoli, Mariangela, 2019. "The Role of Information Sources and Providers in Shaping Green Behaviors. Evidence from Europe," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 164(C), pages 1-1.
    19. Mengge Hao & Dongyong Zhang & Stephen Morse, 2020. "Waste Separation Behaviour of College Students under a Mandatory Policy in China: A Case Study of Zhengzhou City," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-20, November.
    20. Baihui Jin & Wei Li, 2023. "External Factors Impacting Residents’ Participation in Waste Sorting Using NCA and fsQCA Methods on Pilot Cities in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(5), pages 1-21, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:recore:v:75:y:2013:i:c:p:32-40. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Kai Meng (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/resources-conservation-and-recycling .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.