From Berkeley: Should we blame the rich for clogging our landfills?

Waste Manag Res. 2014 Feb;32(2):91-6. doi: 10.1177/0734242X13514625. Epub 2014 Jan 21.

Should we blame the rich for clogging our landfills?

Trilnick I, Tal A.

Author information

• 1Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of California, Berkeley, USA.

Abstract

Conventional wisdom often holds that relatively high consumption levels among the affluent contributes to the generation of high volumes of municipal solid waste (MSW). Comparing data from different cities in Israel suggests otherwise. Regression analysis reveals that aggregate per capita waste outputs of cities are only vaguely correlated with their socio-economic indicators. In fact, the apparent 'hedonic' waste of the richest cities, compared with the average ones, accounts for only about 2% of the total waste production. Israel's main economic area, the Tel Aviv district, produces a quarter more MSW per capita than other districts, suggesting a need for special attention by policy makers. A surprisingly strong predicator of MSW per capita is water consumption by municipalities, dedicated for public gardening. The trimmings of the municipal landscape constituting an unobserved fraction of total MSW data, are estimated to be responsible for 15% of Israel's MSW, making it an additional target area for consideration and intervention.