Recycling or Rubbish? Understanding Decision-Making in Household Recycling Programs

• Published in: Smart and sustainable manufacturing systems 2021-05, Vol.5 (2), p.88-99
• Main Authors: Browne, C. A., Moloney, B.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 2520-6478; 2572-3928
• DOI: 10.1520/SSMS20200007

Material recycling is an increasingly complex global problem. Unprecedented levels of material consumption across developed economies and continuous innovation around materials and manufacturing within the economy have made the practical challenge of closing the loop in recycling increasingly difficult. At the same time, political decisions at the global scale, such as exported recyclables not meeting standards for processing, are forcing local municipalities and councils to reconsider their approach to curbside recycling systems. In recent decades, local councils in Australia have tried various methods, such as education and awareness training, for decreasing contamination of recyclable material in curbside recycling bins. These efforts have been shown to have had a limited effect. To investigate this phenomenon at a local level, we conducted a practical workshop and knowledge experiment with undergraduate engineering students. Students were given a worksheet where they were required to sort household items into curbside recycling, drop-off recycling, or landfill. In this experiment, there were two intervention groups: a picture-based intervention and slogan-based intervention. We found that students in both groups were able to more reliably sort items intended for the Recycling waste stream than the Landfill waste stream. Further, we found that waste education interventions did little to improve correct sorting of items in the Recycling waste stream but did make a difference for Landfill items. This shows that methods for improving communication about material waste streams are needed to improve end-of-life disposal efforts, even within a cohort of young adults who have a background in engineering materials.