Syschemiq D4.4 deliverable

Abstract

This deliverable aims at developing an empirical research article based on the field experiments based on the results from Task 4.3.1 and Task 4.3.2. Multiple experimental interventions and campaigns alongside waste analysis were conducted to gain behavioral insights into effective strategies for encouraging citizens to engage in smart recycling. In this article we investigate the configurational conditions through which the households can be stimulated to better separate the plastic bottles, flasks, metal packaging and drink cartons (PMD)-packaging from other household general waste) and to increase the quantity and quality of collected and recyclable PMD. Better waste separation is important for recycling because it reduces contamination, ensuring materials are pure enough to be reprocessed, which increases recycling rates and conserves resources for new products. Proper separation also minimizes the amount of waste sent to landfills. Following a comprehensive literature review on determinants of waste separation behavior, interventions and experiments, we assess the impacts of nudging citizens to recycle in two neighborhoods. Firstly, we conducted an initial field and facility observations in Geleen, a city located in the southernmost province of the Netherlands to select these two neighborhoods (January 2024). This was followed by a pre-intervention waste collection and contamination analysis in these selected two neighborhoods to establish a baseline (February 2024). Our intervention consists of door-to-door, in-person knowledge campaigns for residents which are led by professional waste coaches. In both neighborhoods, we also conducted a questionnaire with the residents to collect data on PMD separation during the campaign (March - May 2024). In these neighborhoods, followu0002up waste collection and contamination analyses were conducted in April and June 2024 to measure the potential impact of the interventions. Based on the data collected from thequestionnaire, fuzzy set theoretic QCA (fs-QCA) is applied to these small and medium size observation samples collected from these two neighborhoods. Results of the objective waste analyses and fs-QCA indicate that the presence of the notion of ‘separating PMD is important’ is a necessary condition for large shares of PMD waste separation to occur. Sufficient for large shares of PMD waste being separated are two paths of conditions. One path consists of two (related) normative conditions (negative judgement on other’s lack of separation and this verdict being based on environmental / societal considerations) and one demographic condition (no large household). The second path consists of the same normative conditions, combined with an enabler condition (presence of high-qualitycontainers). Several conditions highlighted in previous research do not emerge as important for large shares of PMD being separated in this sample, practical (ease of separation), historical (being residents many years living in the neighborhood), and cognitive conditions (separation knowledge or higher education level) are not part of sufficient routes to large shares of PMD waste separation to occur. Findings indicate that multi-generational community-wide information, and knowledge campaigns (also targetingnorms of public) and public investment in visible physical infrastructures could provide behavioral levers to stimulate citizens’ collective actions to engage in smart recycling to eliminate specific types of plastic products from their waste.