Resources, conservation & recycling advances最新文献

The application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to remediation technologies is still not a consolidated practice and it is especially lacking in the assessment of the environmental impacts associated to the management of the waste produced during remediation. This study aims at addressing these methodological gaps by identifying the typologies of waste typically generated during the remediation of a contaminated site and classifying them according to the European Waste Catalogue (EWC) codes. Thereafter, the following steps are: (i) the identification of the waste management scenarios (WMSs) applicable to the identified waste typologies, (ii) the selection of Life Cycle Assessment processes that can be used to assess the impacts of the different WMSs and (iii) the quantification and comparison of the environmental impacts caused by the different WMSs applied considering hazardousness levels to which the same waste may belong in relation to its contamination levels and characteristics: inert, non-hazardous and hazardous waste (Waste Framework Directive 2008/98/EC). As results, a matrix reporting the classes and typologies of waste, their EWC codes, their different WMSs and the suitable LCA processes from the Ecoinvent database that can be applied to each EWC within a specific WMS, has been developed. Additionally, the comparative assessment of the impacts caused by the Ecoinvent processes applicable to the same waste typology within the same WMS has been performed to support the selection of the most appropriate WMS case by case.

Devulcanized rubber (DVR) and waste plastics have been studied separately as bitumen modifiers, but their individual drawbacks prevent full implementation in the field. In this paper, two pelletized composites produced by coupling DVR with waste low-density polyethylene (LDPE) and polypropylene (PP) were investigated. Linear viscoelastic properties, rutting, and fatigue cracking performance were evaluated, and results were compared to those obtained on neat and polymer-modified bitumen with high styrene-butadiene-styrene content (HiPMB). The non-recoverable creep compliance was reduced with the increasing addition of DVR with either LDPE or PP, and the modified bitumen can be classifiable as “E” grade like the common HiPMB. Bitumen modified with DVR-LDPE compounds showed the best fatigue cracking performance overall, and can fully replace the industrial HiPMB. The implications of these results go beyond the sole performance improvement since these compounds can significantly reduce the environmental impact of road construction by using two waste materials simultaneously.

Existing research indicates comparative social norm feedback can be influential in nudging recycling in more sustainable directions, but little work has explored this mechanism in urban multifamily buildings. This research builds upon existing work in this area by conducting 12 weeks of interventions in two multifamily buildings in New York City, in which one building (n=372) received weekly comparative feedback comparing their building's recycling to neighbors and another building (n=602) received weekly non-comparative feedback data about their building only. Two main findings emerged: (1) Data indicate increased recycling by bag weight (interpolated for a one-year period from the weights of waste samples) in the intervention period in both buildings, pointing to effectiveness in increasing recycling from social norm feedback, and (2) the comparative feedback mechanism appears to be a stronger driver of behavior change. Takeaways from this work can inform urban policy and property manager decision-making for solid waste management.

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.

Sustainable alternatives such as natural dyes are much-needed, but also highly dependent on consumer acceptance and cognizance of the benefits of natural dyes versus those derived from synthetic origin. This study explores and describes consumers’ understanding of environmental repercussions surrounding apparel coloration and their willingness to choose more sustainable alternatives. In adopting a qualitative paradigm, seven focus group discussions generated in-depth insight surrounding consumers’ perspectives on the topic. A purposive non-probability sampling technique was used to recruit females aged between 20 and 55 years because they are generally more involved in apparel consumption decisions. The findings revealed that despite participants’ convictions surrounding the fashion industry's environmental impact, their understanding of apparel coloration and the implications of synthetic dyes were limited. Participants also identified factors that may inhibit their choice of naturally dyed apparel. Information provision and the role of various stakeholders appear key in the pursuit of more sustainable choices.

Textile sector accounts for around 10% of worldwide CO₂ emissions. Textile waste is a global problem. It is a significant and quickly expanding issue in Australia, with the lowest recovery rate of all waste kinds. The entire understanding of textile waste management is incomplete. This study aims to analyse textile waste management in Australia from the perspectives of textile consumption and waste generation, the role of social entrepreneurs and charities, recent initiatives by government and other organizations, and textile waste laws and regulations. The findings of this study indicate that (1) Textile consumption and waste data are insufficient to unveil the circular economy potential; (2) Textile waste management processing capacities were lacking; (3) Clear instructions are required to comprehend textile waste laws and regulations; (4) To combat the textile waste issue, consumer awareness of managing textile waste should be raised. Future research should focus on data collection for model development.

Rubber production plays a critical role in tropical livelihoods. Identifying factors that balance environmental and socio-economic dimensions of rubber is important for achieving Sustainable Development Goals. Here, we assess smallholder data of unprecedented coverage, spanning across 20,000 farmers from Thailand, Indonesia, and Côte d'Ivoire, collected via interviews through the Rubberway initiative. We found that agricultural extension and rubber clonal varieties were associated with higher farmers’ income. Absence of land tenure was negatively linked to workers’ income. Further, family tenure rights were positively associated with plantation expansion, but, with a lower probability of expanding into natural habitats. Interestingly, higher farmers’ income was also linked to expansion, suggesting trade-offs between the socio-economic and environmental dimensions of sustainability. Interventions, including agricultural extension and distribution of clonal varieties, need to be carefully coupled with safeguards on land tenure to prevent further expansion of rubber into natural habitats.

Existing building stocks (BS) were not designed or constructed with circular economic (CE) strategies. Hence, recycling is vital in enabling CE in such BS. However, the lack of information about the scale and scope of the forecasted BS waste and its geo-located data hinders decisions on the selection of locations for recycling centres and proper landfills and evidence-based policy developments. BS mining, assisted with geographic information systems (GIS) and remotely sensed data are ideal for generating BS data and assisting end-of-life decisions for CE. However, the number of studies that have compared different BS data collection methods and analysis techniques is limited. This study investigates the research maturity of GIS, remote sensing, spatial analysis, and complementary methods adopted in BS mining and CE studies using a systematic literature review. As a critical outcome, a conceptual framework was developed to assist future BS mining, CE studies and industry practice.

Although soil erosion is a major threat to agriculture in Ethiopia still, a lower proportion of the cultivated land is treated with appropriate soil and water conservation (SWC). This study aims to investigate the main factors of adopting SWC and challenges limiting its effectiveness in Gumara watershed. Data were collected from 330 sample farmers using structured questionnaire, interviews, and focus group discussions. Logistic regression model was employed for analysis. The age, education, farm size, family size, extension services, livestock units, and perceived benefits significantly affect the adoption of conventional SWC (P < 0.05). Although some farmers practiced different SWCs, the effectiveness has been threatened by the poor foundation and planning (12.1%), very low attention to recurrent maintenance (39.7%), free animals grazing (15.2%), limited assistance from the local government (24.5%). Therefore, the local government and all stakeholders should work on determinants of SWC adoption and the main bottlenecks of its effectiveness.