The theme for this week’s sustainability research is WASTE
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Research in Details
Research #1
Food waste management in Shanghai full-service restaurants: A senior managers’ perspective
Highlights
Explores food waste management in a sample of full-service restaurants in Shanghai.
Establishes the significant magnitude of food waste generation.
Pinpoints the Chinese dining culture as a major cause.
Highlights the mostly passive nature of existing mitigation approaches.
Elaborates on the interventions required for more effective mitigation.
Authors: Viachaslau Filimonau, Huining Zhang, Ling-en Wang
Date of publication: 10 JUNE 2020
Summary
The challenge of food waste in the foodservice sector of China is under-examined. This paper advances knowledge by exploring the food waste management practices adopted in a sample of Shanghai full-service restaurants. Through 22 in-depth semi-structured interviews with senior managers it establishes the significance of the food waste challenge and identifies Chinese food consumption habits as a major cause. Despite the pronounced role of consumers in food waste generation, restaurateurs largely fail to engage them in mitigation. To mitigate food waste occurring on customer plates, changes to the Chinese dining culture should be facilitated via nation-wide campaigns aiming to raise public awareness of food waste when eating out. The government of China should lead on the design of such campaigns, ideally involving celebrities for better consumer appeal and academics for the assessment of their effectiveness. The national government should also provide free-to-attend specialist training to restaurant managers and staff on how to mitigate food waste occurring in kitchens.
Keywords: Foodservice sector, Full-scale restaurant, Food waste, Mitigation, Dining culture, China
Research #2
Why is there plastic packaging in the natural environment? Understanding the roots of our individual plastic waste management behaviors
Highlights:
Intention to discard waste is at the heart of the understanding of plastic pollution.
A cost-benefit balance modulates our individual plastic waste management behaviors.
Underestimation of plastic impacts is one explanation for individual mismanagement of waste.
Land filling can be linked to the persistence of old waste management behavior.
The study of waste reuse behavior could be a source of innovation to improve waste management.
Authors: Mikaël Kedziers kia, Dominique Frère, Gwénaël Le Maguerc, Stéphane Bruzauda
Date of publication: 06 JUNE 2020
Summary
Plastic waste is now a classic contaminant of the natural environment and the origins of the contamination need to be well understood. The transition from a useful object to a waste product is a fundamental moment that, from the point of view of the scientific literature, remains poorly understood. This review therefore aims to highlight some factors controlling this intentionality, but also those that influence individual waste management behaviors. For this purpose, an original approach involving the study of the amount of knowledge within different disciplinary fields of research has been employed. The results underline that the low direct impact of the consequences on their users of the discarding of plastic packaging seems to be an important reason for individual mismanagement. Furthermore, the modern individual behaviors of the discarding of plastics are often deeply rooted in the past of the populations. Policies to reduce waste disposal come up against strong individual behavioral constraints that limit the proper management of plastic waste. Thus, incivilities, difficulty in enforcing sanctions, or public opposition to changes in waste management are all factors that contribute to the maintenance waste discarding behavior. The reuse behavior of objects that have become useless is also historically attested, but has tended to disappear with the rise of the consumer society. This type of behavior, whose valorization is a way of reducing plastic waste abandonment behavior, remains, however, less scientifically studied than other ways such as recycling.
Keywords: Plastic waste, Waste management behaviors, Waste management history, Environment
Research #3
The sustaining effects of e-waste-related metal exposure on hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis reactivity and oxidative stress
Highlights:
E-waste exposure increased the concentration of some metals in blood.
E-waste exposure elevated the level of hormones of HPA axis in blood.
E-waste exposure increased the level of oxidative stress biomarkers in blood.
Blood Cr and Ni correlated with the HPA axis hormones and oxidative stress biomarkers.
Adverse health effect was still observed after e-waste dismantling was shut down.
Authors: Zhigang Li, Xiaoqian Li, Yan Qiana, Chen Guoa, Zhanshan Wanga, Yongjie Wei
Date of publication: 05 JUNE 2020
Summary
Taizhou is one of the three largest electronic waste (e-waste) recycling locations in China. At present, to prevent the environmental problems stem from e-waste dismantling, the local government shut down all the industries in 2015. However, little is known to the sustaining effects of e-waste exposure on human health after the e-waste recycling factories were closed. In this study, we collected blood samples in the residents living near e-waste dismantling factories (exposed group) and a chosen reference area (reference group) for comparison in Taizhou in December 2017.17 metals were quantitatively determined in all blood samples. Among them, the concentrations of altogether 9 metals, including chromium (Cr), arsenic (As), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), silver (Ag), stannum (Sn), mercury (Hg), lanthanum (La) and cerium (Ce) were significant higher in the individuals in exposed group than in reference group. Hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA axis) is critical endocrine system in regulating many physical functions. We found that the concentrations of hormones in HPA axis, including corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol, were higher in exposed group than in reference group. Moreover, we also observed significantly higher concentrations of biomarkers of oxidative stress (OS), including malondialdehyde (MDA) and 8-isoprostane (8-I), in exposed group compared with reference group even though the e-waste industries have been shut down for over 2 years. Meanwhile, the hormones in the HPA axis and the biomarkers of OS showed sinificantly positive correlation. The results of Pearson correlation and multiple linear regression showed that blood Cr and Ni positively correlated with the 3 hormones and 2 biomarkers of OS. Considering the relationship between Ni and Cr, HPA axis, OS, we speculated that high concentrations of Cr and Ni exposure could induce oxidative damage in e-waste exposure persons, and the regulations of HPA axis could play the important role during the process.
Keywords:E-waste, Metal, HPA axis, Oxidative stress, Chromium, Nickel
Research #4
Assessment of heavy metal(loid)s contamination risk and grain nutritional quality in organic waste-amended soil
Highlights:
TCMR-applied increased grain nutritional quality and decreased metal(loid)s content.
TCMR + HCF significantly enhanced protein, amino acids, and lysine levels.
Cr and As contributed the highest percentage of health risk.
Sheep manure application would be limited by its Cd, Hg, and Pb contents.
A stricter national standards regulation should be imposed for soil contamination.
Authors: Jifu Ma, Yiping Chena, Vasileios Antoniadis, Kaibo Wang, Yizong Huang, Hanwen Tian
Date of publication: 04 JUNE 2020
Summary
Studies that evaluate the human health risk of heavy metal(loid)s pollution have not been widely performed for organic waste-amended soils on the Loess Plateau of China. With this respect, we conducted a 3-year field trial to estimate the heavy metal(loid)s contamination of soil and maize, the resultant nutritional quality of maize grains and the health risk under treatments of conventional fertilizer (CF), traditional Chinese medicine residue (TCMR) and sheep manure (SM). We found that protein, amino acids and lysine in maize grains were increased by 12.3, 11.3 and 5.88% under TCMR treatments relative to SM application, respectively. Meanwhile, this treatment reduced the levels of Cr, Pb, Cd, As and Hg in soil and maize grains. All fertilization regimens resulted in greater health risks for children, with HI values ranging from 1.06 to 1.52 and CR levels for Cr and As being ﹥1.0 × 10−4, especially higher in SM treatments. This presented the beneficial effect of TCMR than SM. The further investigated of toxic metal(loid)s level in SM and its application risks, based on meta-analysis and Monte Carlo simulation, indicated Cd, Hg and Pb were the most cautionary heavy metal(loid)s and contamination risk were greater on the southwest regions of China.
Keywords: Toxic metal(loid)s, soil pollution, organic wastes, human health risk, Loess Plateau
Research #5
Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) method for assessing the sustainability of end-of-life alternatives for waste plastics: A case study of Norway
Highlights
Modified MAVT is used to ensure sustainable end-life management of fishing gears.
MAVT procedure offers a structured and transparent decision making framework.
SDGs proven effective in engaging stakeholders and communicating sustainability.
Results highlight the need for ensuring sustainability in circular strategies.
Results identify barriers and opportunities to realize circular business models.
Authors: Paritosh C. Deshpande, Christofer Skaar, Helge Brattebø, Annik Magerholm Fet
Date of publication: 01 JUNE 2020
Summary
Plastic, and its pollution of marine ecosystems, has emerged as a global concern. Among the several other sources, plastics from abandoned, lost, or discarded fishing gears (ALDFG) and ropes are considered the most dangerous for marine wildlife. In EU states, the management ALDFG is prioritized through a dedicated action plan owing to the hazardous nature of ALDFG and the increase in commercial fishing activity in EU waters. The action plan demands to close the loop of plastics from fishing to ensure sustainable resource management using strategies of the circular economy (CE). Commercial fishing is a crucial sector in Norway, generating 4000 tons of waste plastic annually from fishing gears and ropes. While recycling, landfilling, and incineration are the standard end-of-life management options, the recycling industry in the region is immature. The lack of recycling capacity and inadequate infrastructure results in exporting most of the recyclable fraction out of Norway for further processing. Although within the framework of CE, the transboundary export of waste for recycling misses the opportunity to create value out of waste within the region. Therefore, in the pursuit of CE strategies, it is essential to ensure regional sustainability.
In this study, we assess the environmental, economic, and social impacts of landfilling, incinerating, and recycling of waste fishing gears in Norway. To represent the current state, we include two existing recycling scenarios for the assessment, namely, recycling (inland) and recycling (export). Based on qualitative and quantitative data from relevant stakeholders, we adapted multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) to rank the end-of-life (EOL) alternatives through their ability to sustainably manage 4000 tons of waste plastics from fishing gears in Norway. The ranking and insights from stakeholder interaction were used to ascertain potential barriers in realizing principles of CE and to further recognize opportunities for establishing circular business models in the region.
Keywords: Plastic pollution, Recycling, Circular economy, Waste management, SDGs,Sustainability, ALDFG