title: Evaluating source separation of plastic waste using conjoint analysis.
abstract: Using conjoint analysis, we estimated the willingness to pay (WTP) of households for source separation of plastic waste and the improvement of related environmental impacts, the residents' loss of life expectancy (LLE), the landfill capacity, and the CO2 emissions. Unreliable respondents were identified and removed from the sample based on their answers to follow-up questions. It was found that the utility associated with reducing LLE and with the landfill capacity were both well expressed by logarithmic functions, but that residents were indifferent to the level of CO2 emissions even though they approved of CO2 reduction. In addition, residents derived utility from the act of separating plastic waste, irrespective of its environmental impacts; that is, they were willing to practice the separation of plastic waste at home in anticipation of its "invisible effects", such as the improvement of citizens' attitudes toward solid waste issues.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urban Engineering, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan. nakatani@chemsys.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Nakatani
authors.forename: Toshiya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Aramaki
authors.forename: Keisuke
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hanaki
mesh_terms: D002755:Choice Behavior; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D003657:Decision Making; D007564:Japan; D008017:Life Expectancy; D010969:Plastics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D011788:Quality of Life; D012037:Refuse Disposal / Q000191:economics* / Q000379:methods*; D014505:Urban Population
chemical_list: D010969:Plastics