RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Fostering Recycling Participation in Wisconsin Households through Single-Stream Programs
JF Land Economics
JO Land Econ
FD University of Wisconsin Press
SP 481
OP 502
DO 10.3368/le.93.3.481
VO 93
IS 3
A1 Bell, Jason
A1 Huber, Joel
A1 Kip Viscusi, W.
YR 2017
UL http://le.uwpress.org/content/93/3/481.abstract
AB Single-stream recycling enables households to recycle an unsorted mix of cans, plastic, glass, and paper, thereby reducing recycling costs. The expansion of single-stream recycling in Wisconsin provides a natural experiment to assess the extent to which single-stream increases recycling behavior. Using a longitudinal database that matches household recycling participation to county-level recycling policies from Wisconsin, we identify respondent and county characteristics that promote recycling. The results of both fixed-effects regressions and a differences-in-differences analysis demonstrate that single-stream programs increase recycling within households. The shift from dual-stream to single-stream has benefits exceeding costs. (JEL Q53)