Waste Management: Valorisation Is the Way

Waste management is one of the great problems in the world today. This study aims to analyse how scientific research has evolved in recent years in the field of waste management and what will be the key issues in the coming years, mainly in terms of recovery. The methodology used was longitudinal bibliometric analysis through scientific mapping using strategic maps and thematic networks. Among the findings, it was confirmed that the concept of incineration is fading due to social opposition and is changing to a much broader concept that encompasses it, such as valorisation. Being able to create a circular economy without waste should be the goal of policy makers. To achieve this, the waste hierarchy must be respected, which indicates that waste must be managed in this order: prevention, minimisation, reuse, valorisation, recovery and elimination.

TRANSFORMATION VECTORS OF LEGAL REGULATION IN THE FIELD OF ENERGY USE OF WASTE

The present article examines the problem of transformation of legal regulation in the field of energy use of waste taking into account both external and internal factors of influence. The main purpose of the article is to specify the vectors of this transformation. One of the vectors is the strengthening of energy specialization of the waste legislation. Within the framework of this issue, the innovations proposed by the draft Law of Ukraine on waste from 04.06.2020 are being considered. Special attention is given to such innovations as waste hierarchy, requirements for incineration and co-incineration of waste, as well as criterion of energy efficiency for incineration facilities. The place of particular energy operation with waste in the waste hierarchy depends on its environmental, resource-saving, energy efficient and other characteristics. The problems of legal regulation in the field of the management of waste from extractive industries with a high energy value are also studied. Another important transformation vector of legal regulation in the field of energy use of waste is a more complete reflection of waste specificity in the energy legislation. The analysis of the laws of Ukraine “On Alternative Energy Sources” and “On Alternative Fuels” shows that the specificity of waste as an energy source is not fully reflected in them. There are new approaches of the Directive (EU) 2018/2001 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources to the regulation of relations in the field of waste as a type of biomass. It is advisable to apply some of these approaches in Ukraine. It is noted that the development of legal regulation along these vectors will contribute to the harmonization of goals of the waste legislation and the energy legislation.

Avoiding competition: the effects of rankings in the food waste field

Ranks are often seen as drivers for competition. This chapter critically examines the link between ranks and competition by investigating the actors’ actual desire for the highest positions. Empirically, the author examines the role of the food waste hierarchy in establishing status competition in the food waste field. This discrete ranking creates ‘winners’ at the top (the challengers that prevent food waste by generating demand for it), who respond enthusiastically to the food waste hierarchy to benefit from status gains. In contrast, the ‘losers’ at the bottom (biogas plants) show very little interest in improving their position. They do not see themselves as players in such a competitive game and direct their attention towards other competitions outside the field. The chapter argues that ranks do not necessarily induce competition, since the actors may be involved in multiple competitions and decide whether it is worth pursuing high status within each one.

Enabling Reuse in Extended Producer Responsibility Schemes for White Goods: Legal and Organisational Conditions for Connecting Resource Flows and Actors

Extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes have proliferated across Europe and other parts of the world in recent years and have contributed to increasing material and energy recovery from waste streams. Currently, EPR schemes do not provide sufficient incentives for moving towards the higher levels of the waste hierarchy, e.g. by reducing the amounts of waste through incentivising the design of products with longer lifespans and by enhancing reuse activities through easier collection and repair of end-of-life products. Nevertheless, several municipalities and regional actors around Europe are increasingly promoting reuse activities through a variety of initiatives. Furthermore, even in the absence of legal drivers, many producer responsibility organisations (PROs), who execute their members’ responsibilities in EPR schemes, are considering promoting reuse and have initiated a number of pilot projects. A product group that has been identified as having high commercial potential for reuse is white goods, but the development of large-scale reuse of white goods seems unlikely unless a series of legal and organisational barriers are effectively addressed. Through an empirical investigation with relevant stakeholders, based on interviews, and the analysis of two case studies of PROs that developed criteria for allowing reusers to access their end-of-life white goods, this contribution presents insights on drivers and barriers for the repair and reuse of white goods in EPR schemes and discusses potential interventions that could facilitate the upscale of reuse activities. Concluding, although the reuse potential for white goods is high, the analysis highlights the currently insufficient policy landscape for incentivising reuse and the need for additional interventions to make reuse feasible as a mainstream enterprise.

Entrenching Waste Hierarchy for Sustainable Municipal Solid Waste Management in Kenya

Prioritizing waste prevention, reuse, recycling and recovery of materials and energy over disposal through landfilling, offers the waste hierarchy approach (WHA) a sustainable pathway to the management of municipal solid wastes (MSW) and realization of a circular economy. The concept is now part of the legal framework in some developing countries and its implementation has been credited for addressing waste problems linked to high rates of economic growth and urbanization. Even though Africa Vision 2063 prioritizes improvements in urban waste recycling in the continent, much of the MSW generated on the continent is disposed through landfilling evidencing weak adoption of the WHA. This article contends that because WHA is not adequately incorporated in the current legal framework at national and sub-national levels of government, Kenya is unlikely to achieve a circular economy approach necessary for realizing sustainable waste management. Operationalization of the WHA is impeded by inadequate financing, weak institutional coordination, gaps in private sector and informal actors’ engagement and risks associated with investments in large-scale waste recovery initiatives. It is therefore necessary for Kenya to elaborate the WHA in its legal framework at both national and county level, while ensuring adequate financing, involvement of informal actors, incentivization of private sector and adoption of waste planning procedures.

Waste Management. The Disconnection between Normative and SMEs Reality

Waste generation is a critical factor in global environmental degradation, where SMEs have been historically relevant yet underestimated. This study covers the issue of the disconnection between the normative and SMEs reality. Therefore, this research aims to investigate the relationship between waste management norms and their application in Chilean SMEs. For context, Chile is the nation that generates the most amount of waste per capita in the region. Nevertheless, the country also has one of the most rigorous waste frameworks in the region, by means of the Extended Responsibility Producer (ERP) law, which has been gradually implemented since 2016. Data for the study were collected through in-depth interviews with 25 SMEs. The results show the practical limitations of SMEs in complying with the waste law, the lack of traceability in the waste management system, and the need for economic support and technical assistance to improve the use and management of sustainable raw materials. Therefore, this study contributes to the limited knowledge of how SMEs implement waste management norms and their importance in diminishing waste generation and promoting waste hierarchy.

Towards a Circular Economy Taxation Framework: Expectations and Challenges of Implementation

The transition to a circular economy is a complex process requiring wide multi-level and multi-stakeholder engagement and can be facilitated by appropriate policy interventions. Taking stock of the importance of a well-balanced policy mix that includes a variety of complementing policy instruments, the circular economy action plan of the European Union (COM(2020) 98 final) includes a section about “getting the economics right” in which it encourages the application of economic instruments. This contribution presents a comprehensive taxation framework, applied across the life cycle of products. The framework includes (1) a raw material resource tax, (2) reuse/repair tax relief, and (3) a waste hierarchy tax at the end of life of products. The research is based on a mixed method approach, using different sources to analyse the different measures in the framework. More mature concepts, such as material resource taxes, are analysed by reviewing the existing literature. The analysis of tax relief on repairs is based on interviews with stakeholders in Sweden, where this economic policy instrument has been implemented since 2017. Finally, for the waste hierarchy tax, which is a novel proposition in this contribution, macroeconomic modelling is used to analyse potential impacts of future implementation. In all cases, several implementation challenges are identified, and potential solutions are discussed according to literature and empirical sources. Further research is required both at the individual instrument and at the framework level. Each of the tax proposals needs a more detailed examination for its specificities of implementation, following the results of this study.

The choice of optimal sites for controlled landfill using the Analytical Hierarchy Process and the Geographic Information System: A case of Oum Azza in Morocco

Depending on the technical, institutional, economic and social limits of developing countries, as well as the population density in cities, nowadays, the volume of urban waste has increased considerably, and the management of this waste contributes to climate change, and air pollution, it directly affects many ecosystems and many species. Waste management faces serious problems such as irregular collection, informal sweeping activities, uncontrolled dumping and proliferation of illegal dumping. The latter constitute a real and permanent threat to the quality of life, this exponential increase in the urban population and the resulting accelerated phenomenon of urbanization have highlighted the need to develop sustainable and efficient waste management systems. Stakeholders are therefore required to consider alternative and available means of disposal, in particular by minimizing the damage caused to the ecosystem and to the human population, among these means of disposal, controlled landfills, considered as the last option in the waste hierarchy. In this study, attempts were made to locate a new landfill in Oum Azza using the AHP multi-criteria decision-making method to assess the different criteria considered during the prospecting and combining them with the geographic information system to acquire the results in the form of maps displayed on the optimal sites to house a new controlled landfill and minimize its terrible impact on the environment.