IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v12y2020i20p8415-d427056.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Postcollection Separation of Plastic Recycling and Design-For-Recycling as Solutions to Low Cost-Effectiveness and Plastic Debris

Author

Listed:
  • Raymond Gradus

    (School of Business and Economics and Tinbergen Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 HV Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

Abstract

In the Netherlands, plastic waste recycling is high on the policy agenda. Much effort is made to recycle, mostly by residents, who separate plastic waste at home. However, much of the separated waste is not recycled into new products. Substantial amounts are burned or even shipped to Asia. This leads to substantial plastic debris, as recent evidence has shown. Moreover, the cost-effectiveness of plastic recycling versus incineration is very low. Based on evidence from the north of the Netherlands, postcollection or mechanical separation can be a viable alternative as more useful plastics are separated and there are indications that different plastic streams are of higher polymeric purity. Furthermore, there is some circumstantial evidence that cost-effectiveness increases if postseparation is chosen. To avoid large streams of mixed plastics that are barely recyclable, it is important that further agreements with the packaging industry are made to phase out these mixed plastics and further increase the polymeric purity of different plastic waste streams.

Suggested Citation

  • Raymond Gradus, 2020. "Postcollection Separation of Plastic Recycling and Design-For-Recycling as Solutions to Low Cost-Effectiveness and Plastic Debris," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-12, October.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:20:p:8415-:d:427056
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/20/8415/pdf
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/12/20/8415/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2017. "An EU Recycling Target: What Does the Dutch Evidence Tell Us?," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 68(3), pages 501-526, November.
    2. Heller, Marit H. & Vatn, Arild, 2017. "The divisive and disruptive effect of a weight-based waste fee," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 275-285.
    3. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2020. "Post-collection Separation of Plastic Waste: Better for the Environment and Lower Collection Costs?," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 77(1), pages 127-142, September.
    4. Don Fullerton & Thomas C. Kinnaman, 2002. "Household Responses to Pricing Garbage by the Bag," Chapters, in: Don Fullerton & Thomas C. Kinnaman (ed.), The Economics of Household Garbage and Recycling Behavior, chapter 4, pages 88-101, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    5. Bel, Germà & Joseph, Stephan, 2015. "Emission abatement: Untangling the impacts of the EU ETS and the economic crisis," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 531-539.
    6. Gradus, Raymond H.J.M. & Nillesen, Paul H.L. & Dijkgraaf, Elbert & van Koppen, Rick J., 2017. "A Cost-effectiveness Analysis for Incineration or Recycling of Dutch Household Plastic Waste," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 22-28.
    7. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2016. "Post Separation of Plastic Waste: Better for the Environment and Lower Collection Costs," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 16-103/VI, Tinbergen Institute.
    8. Thomas C. Kinnaman & Kenji Takeuchi (ed.), 2014. "Handbook on Waste Management," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 14571.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Philippe Nimmegeers & Alexej Parchomenko & Paul De Meulenaere & Dagmar R. D’hooge & Paul H. M. Van Steenberge & Helmut Rechberger & Pieter Billen, 2021. "Extending Multilevel Statistical Entropy Analysis towards Plastic Recyclability Prediction," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-21, March.
    2. Salih Çevikarslan & Carsten Gelhard & Jörg Henseler, 2022. "Improving the Material and Financial Circularity of the Plastic Packaging Value Chain in The Netherlands: Challenges, Opportunities, and Implications," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-23, June.
    3. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2021. "Are Bottle Banks Sufficiently Effective for Increasing Glass Recycling Rates?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-11, August.
    4. Ayah Alassali & Caterina Picuno & Zhi Kai Chong & Jinyang Guo & Roman Maletz & Kerstin Kuchta, 2021. "Towards Higher Quality of Recycled Plastics: Limitations from the Material’s Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-22, November.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2021. "Are Bottle Banks Sufficiently Effective for Increasing Glass Recycling Rates?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-11, August.
    2. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2019. "More bottle banks only imply a small increase in recycling of glass in the Netherlands," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 19-088/V, Tinbergen Institute.
    3. Ishimura, Yuichi, 2022. "The effects of the containers and packaging recycling law on the domestic recycling of plastic waste: Evidence from Japan," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 201(C).
    4. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2020. "Post-collection Separation of Plastic Waste: Better for the Environment and Lower Collection Costs?," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 77(1), pages 127-142, September.
    5. Raymond (R.H.J.M.) Gradus & Elbert (E.) Dijkgraaf, 2017. "Dutch Municipalities are Becoming Greener: Some Political and Institutional Explanations," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 17-086/VIII, Tinbergen Institute.
    6. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2016. "Post Separation of Plastic Waste: Better for the Environment and Lower Collection Costs," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 16-103/VI, Tinbergen Institute.
    7. Peter Birch Sørensen, 2017. "The Basic Environmental Economics of The Circular Economy," EPRU Working Paper Series 17-04, Economic Policy Research Unit (EPRU), University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics.
    8. Degli Antoni, Giacomo & Vittucci Marzetti, Giuseppe, 2019. "Recycling and Waste Generation: An Estimate of the Source Reduction Effect of Recycling Programs," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 321-329.
    9. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2015. "Efficiency Effects of Unit-Based Pricing Systems and Institutional Choices of Waste Collection," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 61(4), pages 641-658, August.
    10. Pfister, Naomi & Mathys, Nicole A., 2022. "Waste taxes at work: Evidence from the canton of Vaud in Switzerland," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    11. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2014. "The Effectiveness of Dutch Municipal Recycling Policies," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 14-155/VI, Tinbergen Institute.
    12. D'Amato, Alessio & Mazzanti, Massimiliano & Nicolli, Francesco & Zoli, Mariangela, 2018. "Illegal waste disposal: Enforcement actions and decentralized environmental policy," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 56-65.
    13. Hirotaka Kumamaru & Kenji Takeuchi, 2023. "The recycled content of plastic products: estimating the impact of a recycling law on the input mix," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 25(3), pages 355-376, July.
    14. Germà Bel & Raymond Gradus, 2014. "“Effects of unit-based pricing on the waste collection demand: a meta-regression analysis”," IREA Working Papers 201420, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Jun 2014.
    15. Carattini, Stefano & Baranzini, Andrea & Lalive, Rafael, 2018. "Is Taxing Waste a Waste of Time? Evidence from a Supreme Court Decision," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 131-151.
    16. Elbert Dijkgraaf & Raymond Gradus, 2017. "An EU Recycling Target: What Does the Dutch Evidence Tell Us?," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 68(3), pages 501-526, November.
    17. Nainggolan, Doan & Pedersen, Anders Branth & Smed, Sinne & Zemo, Kahsay Haile & Hasler, Berit & Termansen, Mette, 2019. "Consumers in a Circular Economy: Economic Analysis of Household Waste Sorting Behaviour," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 1-1.
    18. Ishimura, Yuichi & Shinkuma, Takayoshi & Takeuchi, Kenji & Hosoda, Eiji, 2024. "The effects of regional goal setting on household waste," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 215(C).
    19. Katarzyna Bernat, 2023. "Post-Consumer Plastic Waste Management: From Collection and Sortation to Mechanical Recycling," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-14, April.
    20. Bel, Germà & Gradus, Raymond, 2016. "Effects of unit-based pricing on household waste collection demand: A meta-regression analysis," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 169-182.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:20:p:8415-:d:427056. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.