THE SOCIAL EFFICIENCY OF PAY-AS-YOU-THROW SCHEMES FOR MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE REDUCTION: A COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF FOUR FINANCIAL INCENTIVE SCHEMES APPLIED IN SWITZERLAND

Loris Alexander Manni () and Hens A. C. Runhaar ()
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Loris Alexander Manni: Repubblica e Cantone Ticino, Ufficio Delle Industrie, Della Sicurezza e Della Protezione del Suolo, Bellizona, Ticino, Switzerland
Hens A. C. Runhaar: Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands

Journal of Environmental Assessment Policy and Management (JEAPM), 2014, vol. 16, issue 01, 1-32

Abstract: The efficient management of waste is important in order to reduce negative externalities, such as air, water and soil pollution. A major challenge is the increasing amount of municipal solid waste (MSW) produced by households. Municipalities around the world have implemented pay-as-you-throw (PAYT) schemes in order to incentivise the reduction of MSW. Although the literature has shown that these financial incentive schemes are often effective, they are criticised in practice for raising costs to society. This paper aims to assess whether or not this criticism is correct. A social cost-benefit analysis was conducted in order to take into account economic, environmental and social costs and benefits. Our results show that PAYT schemes reduce overall social costs and therefore positively contribute to the social efficiency of a municipality. The above criticism is not supported by empirical evidence, but in practice forms a barrier to the implementation of PAYT schemes. In order to remove this barrier, we encourage the readers of JEAPM to disseminate our findings to a wider audience.

Keywords: Municipal solid waste; pay-as-you-throw; pay-by-weight; pay-by-volume; cost-benefit analysis; social efficiency; Switzerland (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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DOI: 10.1142/S146433321450001X

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