Abstract
In order to increase resource recovery from solid waste, better sorting of household waste is needed. This article reports on a case study about waste sorting infrastructure performance carried out in two buildings in Gothenburg, Sweden. Results from the study reveal mismatches between users' needs and what the system offers, affecting the sorting rates and quality of the sorted material. Frequent sorting errors were observed from the tenants in these apartment buildings, where more than 70% of the discards that go in the mixed waste could be sorted out into other available fractions, with biodegradable waste being the most neglected. Hazardous waste was often discarded wrongly and recurrent errors were observed in the containers available for sorting different packaging material. Given the performance observed, initial suggestions are made for housing companies to rethink the sorting system they offer to their tenants (i.e. accessible space for electronic waste, more space for biodegradable waste, possibility of sorting textiles, etc.). Most importantly this paper makes the case that housing companies have the opportunity to provide sorting infrastructure that is designed for the user, rather than just fitted to the waste management system.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 669-679 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | Journal of Cleaner Production |
| Volume | 106 |
| Early online date | 13 Oct 2014 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Nov 2015 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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Waste sorting in apartments : integrating the perspective of the user. / Ordoñez, Isabel; Harder, Robin; Nikitas, Alexandros; Rahe, Ulrike.
In: Journal of Cleaner Production, Vol. 106, 01.11.2015, p. 669-679.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
TY - JOUR
T1 - Waste sorting in apartments
T2 - integrating the perspective of the user
AU - Ordoñez, Isabel
AU - Harder, Robin
AU - Nikitas, Alexandros
AU - Rahe, Ulrike
PY - 2015/11/1
Y1 - 2015/11/1
N2 - In order to increase resource recovery from solid waste, better sorting of household waste is needed. This article reports on a case study about waste sorting infrastructure performance carried out in two buildings in Gothenburg, Sweden. Results from the study reveal mismatches between users' needs and what the system offers, affecting the sorting rates and quality of the sorted material. Frequent sorting errors were observed from the tenants in these apartment buildings, where more than 70% of the discards that go in the mixed waste could be sorted out into other available fractions, with biodegradable waste being the most neglected. Hazardous waste was often discarded wrongly and recurrent errors were observed in the containers available for sorting different packaging material. Given the performance observed, initial suggestions are made for housing companies to rethink the sorting system they offer to their tenants (i.e. accessible space for electronic waste, more space for biodegradable waste, possibility of sorting textiles, etc.). Most importantly this paper makes the case that housing companies have the opportunity to provide sorting infrastructure that is designed for the user, rather than just fitted to the waste management system.
AB - In order to increase resource recovery from solid waste, better sorting of household waste is needed. This article reports on a case study about waste sorting infrastructure performance carried out in two buildings in Gothenburg, Sweden. Results from the study reveal mismatches between users' needs and what the system offers, affecting the sorting rates and quality of the sorted material. Frequent sorting errors were observed from the tenants in these apartment buildings, where more than 70% of the discards that go in the mixed waste could be sorted out into other available fractions, with biodegradable waste being the most neglected. Hazardous waste was often discarded wrongly and recurrent errors were observed in the containers available for sorting different packaging material. Given the performance observed, initial suggestions are made for housing companies to rethink the sorting system they offer to their tenants (i.e. accessible space for electronic waste, more space for biodegradable waste, possibility of sorting textiles, etc.). Most importantly this paper makes the case that housing companies have the opportunity to provide sorting infrastructure that is designed for the user, rather than just fitted to the waste management system.
KW - Apartment buildings
KW - Household waste
KW - Sorting behavior
KW - Sustainable waste handling
KW - User perspective
KW - Waste composition analysis
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84938198774&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.09.100
DO - 10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.09.100
M3 - Article
VL - 106
SP - 669
EP - 679
JO - Journal of Cleaner Production
JF - Journal of Cleaner Production
SN - 0959-6526
ER -