Policy Watch: Examining the Justification for Residential Recycling

Author: Kinnaman, Thomas C.

Source: The Journal of Economic Perspectives, Volume 20, Number 4, Fall 2006 , pp. 219-232(14)

Publisher: American Economic Association

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Abstract:

There are 8,875 municipalities in the United States that have initiated curbside recycling programs over the past two decades to help reduce residential solid waste. Four thousand of these municipalities encourage recycling by requiring households to pay a fee for each unit of garbage presented at the curb for collection. How beneficial have the various recycling policies been in practice? This article examines the empirical lessons gained from twenty years of solid waste policy in the United States and argues for the replacement of several state recycling mandates with a moderate landfill tax.

Document Type: Regular paper

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1257/089533006780387382

Publication date: 2006-09-01

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The Journal of Economic Perspectives (JEP) attempts to fill a gap between the general interest press and most other academic economics journals. The journal aims to publish articles that will serve several goals: to synthesize and integrate lessons learned from active lines of economic research; to provide economic analysis of public policy issues; to encourage cross-fertilization of ideas among the fields of thinking; to offer readers an accessible source for state-of-the-art economic thinking; to suggest directions for future research; to provide insights and readings for classroom use; and to address issues relating to the economics profession.
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