| dc.description.abstract | Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is a policy approach by which producers become responsible for their products after they have been used. EPR takes a central position in the waste management systems in EU-countries, including the Netherlands. This study evaluates the extent to which EPR schemes contribute to higher circularity and improved social welfare of society at large by targeting the behavior of different actors in the value chain.
A comparative study design was adopted, diving into three waste management systems in the Netherlands. Furthermore a broader exploratory study was conducted. The most important findings from semi-structured interviews, literature analysis and descriptive statistics are: 1) EPR effectively shifts the operational waste management cost burden to producers, while the total operational costs have not dropped, 2) EPR kickstarts collection and recycling and can achieve high collection and recycling rates, 3) EPR’s incentives for increasing circular product design or alternative, circular business models are relatively weak, 4) post-use value or price is a key explanatory variable for collection and recycling behavior, and 5) EPR reduces environmental stress by replacing virgin material.
Challenges exist for keeping EPR a well-suiting approach to waste management that is in line with circular economy principles. Notably, environmental performance is insufficiently benchmarked due to its focus on activities, predominantly collection and recycling, rather than impact. Furthermore, financial free-riding on collective waste management efforts by producers and importers through internet sales to end-users is increasingly becoming a problem. Second-hand product exports reduce the pool for collection, which is problematic for achieving collection targets. Lastly, the inter-dependence between parties regarding collection and quality of separately collected material causes a not negligible degree of friction and conflict between the parties.
Overall, EPR is associated with robust organization of the waste management systems by producers, resulting in higher social welfare and circularity gains than before EPR was implemented, but governmental organizations still have an important role in collection and enforcement. | |
