Evaluating the Characteristics of Disaster Waste Management in Practice: Case Studies from Queensland and New South Wales, Australia

Savindi Caldera (), Chamari Jayarathna () and Cheryl Desha
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Savindi Caldera: School of Science, Technology and Engineering, University of the Sunshine Coast, Petrie, QLD 4502, Australia
Chamari Jayarathna: School of Science, Technology and Engineering, University of the Sunshine Coast, Petrie, QLD 4502, Australia
Cheryl Desha: School of Engineering and Built Environment, Griffith University, Nathan, QLD 4111, Australia

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 14, 1-17

Abstract: Disaster waste management (DWM) has gained much attention due to the issues associated with the enormous amount of disaster waste generated by natural disasters. However, moving beyond ad hoc and champion-based take-up by practitioners, there is generally a lack of momentum towards mainstreaming such DWM practices to achieve resilient outcomes. This study aims to explore the characteristics of DWM practices, drawing on the lived experiences of industry practitioners and government decision-makers. An interpretive case study method was used to investigate how local government organisations could readily engage in effective DWM processes using the “Resilient disaster management framework” previously established by the research team. Insights include a lack of documented plans for DWM and at best a moderate focus on recovery processes for disaster waste. With these issues counterproductive to community resilience outcomes, there is an urgent need to better manage disaster waste, which we propose can be enabled and supported through DWM plans. The extended ‘resilient DWM framework’ proposed in this study provides a useful reference to prepare practical, agile, and comprehensive DWM plans.

Keywords: disaster waste management; disaster resilience; case study; Queensland; New South Wales; Australia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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