Integrating Circular Bioeconomy and Urban Dynamics to Define an Innovative Management of Bio-Waste: The Study Case of Turin

Andrea Taffuri, Alessandro Sciullo, Arnaud Diemer and Claudiu Eduard Nedelciu
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Andrea Taffuri: Department of Culture, Politics, and Society, University of Turin, 10124 Turin, Italy
Alessandro Sciullo: Department of Culture, Politics, and Society, University of Turin, 10124 Turin, Italy
Arnaud Diemer: Jean Monnet Excellence Center on Sustainability (ERASME), 63178 Aubière, France
Claudiu Eduard Nedelciu: Jean Monnet Excellence Center on Sustainability (ERASME), 63178 Aubière, France

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 11, 1-18

Abstract: Bio-waste could play a fundamental role in reaching the EU target to recycle 65% of municipal waste by 2035. The European waste policies and the Green New Deal are increasingly focusing on bio-waste enhancement, in particular within the Bioeconomy Strategy and the Circular Economy Package. Circular bioeconomy (CBE) combines these perspectives, with an increasing focus on organic flows extension and enhancement along the economic cycle. This paper analyses the potential of the CBE paradigm to improve the treatment of the organic fraction of the municipal solid waste (OFMSW), taking the Metropolitan City of Turin (MCT) as a case study. Our results indicate that the currently used OFMSW plant capacity of MCT is insufficient with respect to the need for treatment and, above all, inadequate for future demand trends. We advance an analysis of different CBE-related projects, which contribute to the creation of a feasible environment for bio-based closed loops in Turin. In particular, RePoPP (Porta Palazzo Organic Waste Project) is proposed as an instance of a systemic and circular process that could be improved by following the CBE principles. Through the use of qualitative system dynamics, we propose a decentralised alternative MSW management scenario with a micro anaerobic digestion plant at its core. A stakeholder analysis through a power-interest matrix identifies actors that are key to enabling this scenario. The sustainable pathways proposed in this paper can inspire local-level policy design and therefore contribute to the creation of new systemic food and waste policies for the city through the CBE paradigm.

Keywords: bioeconomy; circular economy; circular bioeconomy; waste management; sustainable cities; system dynamics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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