Cost savings of unit-based pricing of household waste: The case of the Netherlands

Using a panel data set for Dutch municipalities we estimate effects for weight-based, bag-based, frequency-based and volume-based pricing of household waste collection. Unit-based pricing shows to be effective in reducing solid and compostable and increasing recyclable waste. Pricing has no effect on the waste collected in surrounding municipalities (waste tourism). However, unit-based pricing may lead to illegal dumping. While empirical evidence is scarce, a social cost-benefit analysis shows that if the social valuation of illegal dumping is in line with the social costs for collecting and treating solid waste, the weight or bag-based systems are preferable.