The European Waste Hierarchy: From the Sociomateriality of Waste to a Politics of Consumption

Abstract

Municipal solid waste is a central concern for environmental policy, and the sociomateriality of waste-the ways in which waste is socially defi ned and dealt with-is an important issue for sustainability. We show how applying the European Union's waste policy through the European Waste Hierarchy (EWH) aff ects the sociomateriality of waste. The EWH ranks the desirability of diff erent waste-management approaches according to their environmental impact. We investigate how the EWH has been acknowledged and interpreted in fi ve diff erent organizational contexts with relevance for Swedish waste management: EU environmental policy, the Swedish EPA, two municipal wastemanagement companies, and the trade organization Swedish Waste Management which represents the interests of municipal bodies involved with waste. In addition to preventing the production of waste, the EWH aims to disassemble, circulate, and reintroduce as much material as possible into production processes. We show how these aims shape paradoxical relationships between economy and society on the one hand, and environment and nature on the other, and open the way for a discussion of a politics of consumption through material management.

The waste hierarchy: a strategic, tactical and operational approach for developing countries. the case study of mozambique

“…Despite landfill being considered the worst waste management option by some authors [19,21], according to the WH, it remains the leading disposal method in several European countries [13]. This situation does not contradict the WH, which considers this waste managemement solution to be acceptable but the worst possible choice, depending on contextual factors.…”

“…This means that every choice should consider not only environmental protection but also the economic viability and the technical feasibility of the local situation. Several studies have been made on WH and various interpretative approaches by different countries and institutions were outlined, revealing contradictions and limits to be overcome [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22].…”

Governance and Risk–Value Constructions in Closing Loops of Rare Earth Elements in Global Value Chains

“…This is evident in the shifting narratives that frame materials as either useful resources or waste [72]. Another example is the classification of resources into either primary or secondary materials versus a singular category that embraces both.…”

“…Both popular and scholarly narratives can galvanize societal agreement on the object of value and at risk, as well as the approaches towards protection. This is evident in the shifting narratives that frame materials as either useful resources or waste [72]. Another example is the classification of resources into either primary or secondary materials versus a singular category that embraces both.…”

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“…Patrik Zapata (2013) notes, for example, that the prevention step is not included when the hierarchy is introduced in the poorer cities of what he calls the Global South. Johan Hultman and Hervé Corvellec (2012) have shown Hervé Corvellec New directions for management and organization studies on waste 9 that the European waste hierarchy model organizes the relationships among various facets of the economy in ambiguous and contradictory ways, in spite of an appearance of continuity among its various levels. Corvellec et al (2013) analyzed the lock-ins that prevent Swedish waste management companies from leaving the incineration stage and describe how climbing the waste hierarchy entails defining biogas based on food waste as a sustainability object -an object that promotes sustainability (2015).…”