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The use of waste diversion indices on the analysis of Canadian waste management models

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Abstract

The performance of non-hazardous waste diversion models were examined in four Western Canadian provinces: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. Between 1998 and 2014, economic outputs, expenditure and profits, and business sizes for both public and private waste services were studied. Three novel indicators were proposed: Waste Management Output Index, Diversion–GDP ratio, and Diversion–Expenditure ratio. British Columbia had the highest overall average diversion rate of 32.7%, while Alberta had the lowest non-residential diversion rate, despite private waste businesses making exceptional profit. Diversion rates alone failed to adequately describe the performance of Canadian waste management systems. The Waste Management Output Index increased with time in all provinces, suggesting the importance of economical outputs from waste management services. Results from the Diversion–GDP ratio showed that higher economic outputs did not appear to have an equally significant impact on diversion. Cost-effectiveness of the systems as measured by the Diversion–Expenditure ratio was constant or slightly declining over the study period. Investigation regarding profit revealed differences between the government and business sectors. Private firms increased in Alberta, doubling between 1998 and 2014. The results of this study highlight the potential benefits of the proposed indices on the evaluation of waste management systems.

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Acknowledgements

The research reported in this paper was supported by a grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (RGPIN-385815). The authors are grateful for their support. The views expressed herein are those of the writers and not necessarily those of our research and funding partners.

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  1. Environmental System Engineering, University of Regina, 3737 Wascana Parkway, Regina, Saskatchewan, S4S 0A2, Canada

    Conglian Pan, Damien Bolingbroke, Kelvin Tsun Wai Ng, Amy Richter & Hoang Lan Vu

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  1. Conglian Pan
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  2. Damien Bolingbroke
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Correspondence to Kelvin Tsun Wai Ng.

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Pan, C., Bolingbroke, D., Ng, K.T.W. et al. The use of waste diversion indices on the analysis of Canadian waste management models. J Mater Cycles Waste Manag 21, 478–487 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10163-018-0809-3

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