Environmental Waste Utilization score to monitor the performance of waste management systems: A novel indicator applied to case studies in Germany

IF 5.4 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES Resources, conservation & recycling advances Pub Date : 2023-10-01 DOI:10.1016/j.rcradv.2023.200160

Sarah Schmidt, David Laner

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引用次数: 4

Abstract

Waste management aims to protect human health and the environment by reducing adverse impacts associated with waste generation and treatment. Nevertheless, waste management system performance is typically not monitored based on environmental impacts but based on indicators such as recycling rates. As part of this study, Environmental Waste Utilization (EWU) is introduced as an indicator to monitor the capability of waste management systems to reduce the adverse impacts of waste generation and management. EWU quantifies the share of the environmental value of waste which is preserved through waste management. It is operationalized via a spreadsheet-based calculation tool, the EWU Dashboard. Case studies on plastic packaging waste, PAH-contaminated road debris, and food waste are presented to demonstrate the application range of EWU and its advantages against material efficiency indicators. It is shown that EWU-based monitoring allows for identifying environmentally preferable waste management strategies and enables sound decision support.

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监测废物管理系统绩效的环境废物利用得分:一种应用于德国案例研究的新指标

废物管理旨在通过减少与废物产生和处理有关的不利影响来保护人类健康和环境。然而，废物管理系统的绩效通常不是根据环境影响监测的，而是根据回收率等指标监测的。作为本研究的一部分，环境废物利用(EWU)被引入作为监测废物管理系统减少废物产生和管理的不利影响的能力的指标。环境废物管理量化了通过废物管理保存的废物的环境价值份额。它通过基于电子表格的计算工具EWU Dashboard进行操作。以塑料包装废弃物、多环芳烃污染的道路垃圾和食物垃圾为例，展示了EWU的应用范围及其相对于材料效率指标的优势。研究表明，基于废物利用联盟的监测可以确定有利于环境的废物管理战略，并提供合理的决策支持。

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