Separate Waste Collection as Russians' Voluntary Practice: the Dynamics, Factors and Potential

Separate Waste Collection as Russians' Voluntary Practice:
the Dynamics, Factors and Potential


Shabanova M.A.

Dr. Sci.(Soc.), Professor, Lead Research Associate, the Center for Studies of Civil Society and the Nonprofit Sector, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russia mshabanova@hse.ru

ID of the Article:

Rubric: Economic sociology

For citation:

Shabanova M.A. Separate Waste Collection as Russians' Voluntary Practice: the Dynamics, Factors and Potential. Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya [Sociological Studies]. 2021. No 8. P. 103-117


 Full Text.


Abstract

The paper presents the data of three all-Russia representative surveys (2014, 2017 and 2020) on the dynamics of the levels, factors and conditions of citizens’ engagement in the practice of separate household waste collection (SWC). It has been ascertained that today a major (and increasingly growing) share of Russians do not reject their engagement in SWC but put forward a counter-demand for an available and convenient infrastructure and information in this sphere. The progress in the development of an enabling environment in 2019–2020 had an impact on the sharp increase in the number of actual SWC participants, a growing number of potential participants and a drastic decline of those who are indifferent, which somehow mitigated adverse impact of the waste problem owing to the pandemic. The study provides evidence that despite the persistence of key motivations and factors of engagement in SWC, significant changes occurred in their structure in 2020 resulting from the waste reform, change in the quality structure of participants and the pandemic challenge. Based on the new wave of the survey, the paper makes a conclusion about the potential and measures for further enhancement of Russians’ participation in SWC.


Keywords
waste issue; civil society; separate collection of household waste; environmental consumer responsibility; pro-environmental behavior; ethical consumption; COVID-19 pandemic

References

Заславская Т.И. Современное российское общество: социальный механизм трансформации. М.: Дело, 2004. [Zaslavskaya T.I. (2004) Modern Russian Society: Social Transformation Mechanism. Moscow: Delo. (In Russ.)]

Шабанова М.А. Раздельный сбор бытовых отходов в России: уровень, факторы и потенциал включения населения // Мир России. 2019. Т. 28. № 3. С. 88–112. [Shabanova M. (2019) Separate Waste Collection in Russia: The Level, Factors and Potential for Citizen Engagement. Mir Rossii [Universe of Russia]. Vol. 28. No. 3: 88–112. (In Russ.)] DOI: 10.17323/1811-038X-2019-28-3-88-112.

Штомпка П. Социология социальных изменений. М.: Аспект Пресс, 1996. [Sztompka P. (1996) The Sociology of Social Change. Moscow: Aspekt-Press.]

Berglund C. (2006) The Assessment of Households’ Recycling Costs: The Role of Personal Motives. Ecological Economics. Vol. 56. No. 4: 560–569. DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2005.03.005.

Czajkowski M., Hanley N., Nyborg K. (2017) Social Norms, Morals and Self-interest as Determinants of Proenvironment Behaviours: The Case of Household Recycling. Environmental and Resource Economics. Vol. 66. No. 4: 647–670. DOI: 10.1007/s10640-015-9964-3.

Etzioni A. (2003) Toward a New Socio-economic Paradigm. Socio-Economic Review. Vol. 1. No. 1: 105–118. DOI: 10.1093/soceco/1.1.105.

Filho W., Voronova V., Kloga M., Paço A., Minhas A., Salvia A., Ferreira C., Sivapalan S. (2021) COVID-19 and Waste Production in Households: A Trend Analysis. Science of the Total Environment. Vol. 777. Article no. 145997. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145997.

Giudice F., Caferra R., Morone P. (2020) COVID-19, the Food System and the Circular Economy: Challenges and Opportunities. Sustainability. Vol. 12. No. 19. Article no. 7939. DOI: 10.3390/su12197939.

Hantoko D., Li X., Pariatamby A., Yoshikawa K., Horttanainen M., Yan M. (2021) Challenges and Practices on Waste Management and Disposal during COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Environmental Management. Vol. 286. Article no. 112140. DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112140.

Hobbs J.E. (2020) Food Supply Chains during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics. Vol. 68. No. 2: 171–176. DOI: 10.1111/cjag.12237.

Hoornweg D., Bhada-Tata В.P. (2012) What a Waste: A Global Review of Solid Waste Management. Urban Development Series Knowledge Papers. No. 15. Washington: The World Bank. URL: https://www. ccacoalition.org/en/resources/what-waste-global-review-solid-waste-management-urban-developmentseries-knowledge-papers (accessed 19.04.2021).

Ikiz E., Maclaren V.W., Alfred E., Sivanesan S. (2021) Impact of COVID-19 on Household Waste Flows, Diversion and Reuse: The Case of Multi-residential Buildings in Toronto, Canada. Resources, Conservation and Recycling. Vol. 164. Article no. 105111. DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2020.105111.

Iyer E.S., Kashyap R.K. (2007) Consumer Recycling: Role of Incentives, Information, and Social Class. Journal of Consumer Behaviour. Vol. 6. No. 1: 32–47. DOI: 10.1002/CB.206.

Kirakozian A. (2016) The Determinants of Household Recycling: Social Influence, Public Policies and Environmental Preferences. Applied Economics. Vol. 48. No. 16: 1481–1503. DOI: 10.1080/00036846.2015.1102843.

Miafodzyeva S., Brandt N. (2013) Recycling Behaviour among Householders: Synthesizing Determinants via a Meta-analysis. Waste and Biomass Valorization. Vol. 4. No. 2: 221–235. DOI: 10.1007/ s12649-012-9144-4.

Micheletti M. (2003) Political Virtue and Shopping: Individuals, Consumerism, and Collective Action. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Owusu V., Adjei-Addo E., Sundberg C. (2013) Do Economic Incentives Affect Attitudes to Solid Waste Source Separation? Evidence from Ghana. Resources, Conservation and Recycling. Vol. 78: 115–123. DOI: 10.1016/J.RESCONREC.2013.07.002.

Pappalardo G., Cerroni S., Nayga R.M. Jr., Yang W. (2020) Impact of COVID-19 on Household Food Waste: The Case of Italy. Frontiers in Nutrition. Vol. 7. Article no. 585090. DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2020.585090.

Principato Р., Secondi L., Cicatiello C., Giovanni M. (2020) Caring More about Food: The Unexpected Positive Effect of the COVID-19 Lockdown on Household Food Management and Waste. Socio-Economic Planning Sciences. Article no. 100953. DOI: 10.1016/j.seps.2020.100953. (In press.)

Robinson G.M., Read A.D. (2005) Recycling Behavior in London Borough: Results from Large-scale Household Surveys. Resources, Conservation and Recycling. Vol. 45. No. 1: 70–83. DOI: 10.1016/j. resconrec.2005.02.002.

Shaw P.J., Maynard S.J. (2008) The Potential of Financial Incentives to Enhance Householders’ Curbside Recycling Behavior. Waste Management. Vol. 28. No. 10: 1732–1741. DOI: 10.1016/j. wasman.2007.08.008.

Thogersen J., Olander F. (2003) Spillover of Environment-friendly Consumer Behavior. Journal of Environmental Psychology. Vol. 23. No. 3: 225–236. DOI: 10.1016/S0272-4944(03)00018-5.

Truelove H.B., Carrico A.R., Weber E.U., Raimi K.T., Vandenbergh M.P. (2014). Positive and Negative Spillover of Pro-environmental Behavior: An Integrative Review and Theoretical Framework. Global Environmental Change. Vol. 29: 127–138. DOI: 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2014.09.004.

UNSCN. (2020) COVID-19 Pandemic: The Evolving Impact on How People Meet the Food System. URL: https://www.unscn.org/en/news-events/recent-news?idnews=2065 (accessed 19.04.2021).

Content No 8, 2021