Cost Calculation of Waste Disposal Fees: Example of Polish Municipalities

Purpose: The main purpose of the research was to identify the manner in which selected municipalities apply municipal waste-management calculations. Additional objectives entailed: establishment of a relationship between the cost accounting of waste-management fees applied and such municipality attributes as, the wealth of the municipality, calculated as the budgetary income per capita; the number of inhabitants; the number of the people in the municipal local government who deal with waste management; establishment of the share of municipal waste-management fees in the budget structure; analysis of the relationship between the level of waste segregation obtained and the amount of the fee for segregated and unsorted waste, in the municipalities under examination. Design/Methodology/Approach: In order to achieve the objectives, the following research questions were formulated: RQ1: How do selected municipalities apply municipal waste management calculations? RQ2: What are the relationships between the cost account of waste management fees and selected attributes of the municipality (number of inhabitants, budget revenues). A qualitative approach based on the methodology characteristic of the case study was used to obtain the answers. Findings: Based on the municipalities examined, it has been observed that municipalities use various methods to calculate the fees for municipal waste management and they apply various, different rates. The presented results derive from the unique and individual nature of each municipality. The multi-faceted diversity of municipalities prevents the creation of one, best municipal waste-management system. Selection of a system for a specific local unit should be optimized in accordance with the regional economic, ecological and social criteria. A correctly calculated municipal waste-management fee must be bona fide and insightful. It should also cover the costs associated with this process and ensure self-balancing of the entire system. In this context, it is necessary to continue the research enabling formulation of the criteria shaping appropriate cost accounting since the analysis of the source data did not show any significant relationships between the examined attributes of the municipality and the method of calculating the costs of waste management adopted by it. Thus, it was possible to obtain a clear answer to RQ2 – this requires more in-depth research. Practical implications: The research indicates the legitimacy of conducting research on strategies and the practice of calculating waste management costs implemented by municipalities. This will allow to indicate the right directions for modifying the system of accounting for these costs. Also, it is worth paying attention to the microeconomic context of research on the calculation of waste management costs - application of cost accounting taking into account the possibility of calculating unit costs of waste acceptance services or recovered raw materials Originality value: