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COVID-19 lockdown and municipal solid waste: evidence from the discarding records of 252 communities in China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 November 2022

Dongmin Kong Open the ORCID record for Dongmin Kong [Opens in a new window] ,
Chenhao Liu  and
Ling Han
Dongmin Kong*
Affiliation:
School of Economics, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
Chenhao Liu
Affiliation:
Guanghua School of Management, Peking University, Beijing, China
Ling Han
Affiliation:
College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, China
*
*Corresponding author. E-mail: kongdm@hust.edu.cn
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Abstract

This study investigates the impacts of the COVID-19 lockdown on municipal solid waste (MSW). Based on a unique data set of daily discarding records of 252 communities in Beijing, China, we conduct a difference-in-differences estimation and find that the total daily MSW decreased by 134.16 kg in a community, which is equivalent to at least 0.22 kg per household per day, and the average weight of MSW per package decreased by 56.8 per cent after the COVID-19 lockdown. We consider a series of potential mechanisms, such as MSW hoarding, shifts in discarding time, and fear of going out, and find the most support for consumption pattern shifts with reduced consumption. We then discuss the effect of the lockdown on the reduction of MSW generation because of the strict restriction of consumption. We also conduct various heterogeneity analyses. Our results present clear implications for municipal waste management by highlighting the effect of the lockdown on the generation of MSW and the underlying consumption mechanism.

Keywords

ChinaCOVID-19lockdownmunicipal solid waste (MSW)

JEL classification

Q58: Government Policy Q52: Pollution Control Adoption and Costs • Distributional Effects • Employment Effects
Type
Research Article
Information
Environment and Development Economics , Volume 28 , Issue 4 , August 2023 , pp. 307 - 331
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press

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