Using Waste Diversion Indicators To Understand The Diversion Efficiency and the Materials Handled Efficiency of Canadian Solid Waste Management Systems

Waste management systems suffer from a lack of comparability of data. They also suffer from a lack of indicators to properly identify efficient systems from inefficient systems. This study’s objectives are to: (i) introduce a new waste diversion indicator, the Diversion Size Indicator, to better measure the efficiency in a waste management system and (ii) use the Diversion Gross Domestic Product ratio, Diversion Expenditure ratio, current expenditure per tonne handled, and North American Industry Classification System Gross Domestic Product Sector 562 per tonne handled efficiency measures to analyze the federation of Canada and identify efficient and inefficient waste management systems. In doing so it was found that using the Diversion Size Indicator, the only province in Canada that had an increase in Diversion Size Indicator, and therefore waste system efficiency, was Nova Scotia. From 1998-2014, the ranking of Diversion Size Indicator in Nova Scotia also increased and the coefficient of variation throughout 1998-2014 in Nova Scotia was very low at 12%, suggesting a mature and consistent waste management system. The prairie provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta all had high coefficients of variation. Further using the other four indicators, Nova Scotia was found to have a very efficient system, ranking in the top three of provinces in 2014 in all four rankings of efficiency besides the Diversion Size Indicator. In contrast Newfoundland and Labrador, had the lowest efficiency in 2014 as it ranked in the bottom three of provinces in all four rankings. Alberta ranked low in the diversion efficiency measures but ranked high in the cost efficiency of materials handled indicators, suggesting a focus on cost efficiency rather than on diversion rate. The opposite was found for Quebec, where it ranked high in the diversion efficiency measures but ranked low in the cost efficiency of materials handled indicators, suggesting a focus on diversion rate rather than on cost efficiency.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Applied Science (MASc)

Level thesis:degree_level

Master's

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Engineering - Environmental Systems

Grantor dc:publisher

Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, University of Regina

Year dc:date.issued

2019

Author dc:creator

• Bolingbroke, Damien ErnSyl Jon

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Ng, Kelvin Tsun Wai

Committee member dc:contributor.committeemember

• Wu, Peng

Language dc:language.iso

en

DOI

https://doi.org/10.82465/4532

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:uregina.scholaris.ca:10294/9193