International Review of Waste Management Policy - Department of ...

In addition to these UK focused studies, work undertaken elsewhere in Europe of
particular relevance includes:
945
� A literature review of social costs and benefits of waste disposal and recycling
(the Dijkgraaf & Vollebergh study), which challenges the assumption that the
waste hierarchy is always correct; 1157
� A study for the European Commission on the economic valuation of
environmental externalities from landfill disposal and incineration of waste
(the COWI study); 1158
The final reports reviewed relate to the impacts arising from the use of landfill,
incineration and MBT for residual waste.
� The first of these is a 2007 report for Greenstar on waste policy, planning and
regulation in Ireland by Eunomia and Tobin. 1159
� The second report, from 2008, by the same authors, for the same client,
focuses on the potential role of MBT in meeting Ireland’s waste targets. 1160
A forthcoming Regulatory Impact Analysis has been developed for both a levy on
plastic bags, and a levy on certain waste facilities. The study also considers the
external costs of the waste treatment options under consideration. However, the
studies mentioned in the work are all covered in this review (as well as some others).
61.3.1 CSERGE et al (1993)
This work was used in the run-up to the introduction of the Landfill Tax and was
influential in the decisions made concerning the level at which the tax should be
set. 1161 The aim was to understand the externalities associated with landfill and
incineration.
Although the study undertook a review of work carried out elsewhere in assessing
disamenity associated with landfills, these were omitted in the quantification of the
external costs. The study noted these could be ‘significant’ and therefore their
omission would affect the results. Brisson and Pearce later suggested that employing
benefits transfer techniques from US studies would make a figure of £160 (about
processes from the second study (see HM Customs & Excise (2004) Combining the Government’s Two
Heath and Environment Studies to Calculate Estimates for the External Costs of Landfill and
Incineration, December 2004).
1157 E. Dijkgraaf and H. Vollebergh (2005) Literature review of social costs and benefits of waste
disposal and recycling, in EAI (2005) Rethinking the Waste Hierachy, EAI: Copenhagen, pp. 80-98.
1158 COWI (2000) External Costs of Landfill and Incineration, Final Report to the European Commission.
1159 Eunomia and Tobin (2007) Waste Policy, Planning and Regulation in Ireland, Final Report for
Greenstar, Dublin, Ireland.
1160 Eunomia and Tobin (2008) Meeting ireland’s Waste Targets: The role of MBT, Final Report for
Greenstar, Dublin, Ireland.
1161 For a more detailed review of this study, see E. Broome, P. Vaze and D. Hogg (2000) Beyond the
Bin: The Economics of Waste Management, Final Report to Waste Watch.
International Review of Waste Policy: Annexes