Does Simplification of Plastic Waste Separation Promote Plastic Recycling?

This study seeks to explore the effect of a policy intervention designed to simplify curbside recycling standards for plastic waste separation on recycling volume and quality. We employ a causal impact analysis based on a Bayesian structural time series approach to estimate the effect of simplifying the municipal solid waste separation process for plastic waste in Japan. We find that simplification of plastic waste separation standards increases the curbside collection volume of plastic packaging waste. This effect seems to be largely driven by behavioral changes such as decreased time spent on waste separation. We also find that the quality of postcollection plastic packaging waste separation decreases significantly in response to simplified separation standards. These results are supported by many robustness and falsification tests. Our results highlight the importance of considering the trade-off between the quantity and quality of recycling in designing plastic waste recycling policies