Sustainable Development of the Catering Industry in China: Policy and Food Waste

The catering industry is an important industry related to the growth of the national economy and the needs of daily life. After 2012, the central government has successively introduced and implemented a series of policies to limit the official consumption and catering waste. These policies have had a huge impact on China's catering industry, especially the development of high-end catering. Based on expert scoring and interviews with government managers, the catering industry organizations, catering enterprises, researchers and consumers, this paper studies the impacts of the policies before and after 2012 on the sustainable development of the catering industry. The results show that: (1) Policies after 2012 have been very strong in their strength and duration, and this can ensure that the policies can effectively perform their restraint and management functions in the long term. (2) As affected by policies after 2012, the frequency and amounts of public expenditures in China have dropped significantly, and mass consumption is developing faster. (3) The impact of policies on income is quite controversial. On the whole, the policies have continued to promote the increasing of catering income after 2012, and have played a significant role in optimizing the catering structure and reducing food waste. However, the policies have had little effect on the improvement of industry standards and environmental protection. (4) The sustainable development of the catering industry requires the efforts of the government, industry organizations, restaurants and consumers. Steady income growth, a reasonable and healthy industry structure, sound industry standards, and low food waste are important standards and goals for the sustainable development of the catering industry.     

Waste interfaces: biodegradable waste, municipal policy and everyday practice

Recent years have seen a rapid rise in the political saliency of the ever growing volumes of municipal waste produced in the UK. In this paper, we examine how one particular part of the municipal waste stream – biodegradable waste – has come under the policy spotlight. As targets to divert biodegradable waste from landfill under the Landfill Directive come into force, the need to focus explicitly on recovering value from biodegradable materials has risen up national and local policy agendas, not least with the introduction of the Landfill Allowance Trading Scheme. Accompanying this new rationality for managing waste has been a suite of different policy interventions. In this paper we examine the impact of the changing nature of municipal waste policy and the ways in which it has sought to rework the disposal and collection of biodegradable waste. We argue that the predominantly technical framing and instrumental rationality of these interventions does not sufficiently challenge entrenched understandings regarding the boundaries between public and private responsibility for waste, and thus short-circuits their capacity to engage with everyday community/individual waste practices. In conclusion, we suggest that, in order to move waste management towards sustainability, there is a need both to engage with the institutional and infrastructural dimensions of the systems of provision within which waste management occurs, and to take seriously the everyday contexts within which making waste is practiced.     

The solid waste dilemma

In 1976, the U.S. Congress enacted the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) to further address the problem of increasing industrial and municipal waste. The main objectives of RCRA were to responsibly manage hazardous and solid waste and to procure materials made from recovered wastes. To fulfill these objectives, four main programs of waste management were developed. These programs were defined under Subtitle C, the Hazardous Waste Program; Subtitle D, the Solid Waste Program; Subtitle I, the Underground Storage Tank Program; and Subtitle J, the Medical Waste Program. Subtitle D illustrates the solid waste dilemma occurring in the United States. Under this program, states are encouraged to develop and implement their own waste management plans. These plans include the promotion of recycling solid wastes and the closing and upgrading of all environmentally unsound dumps.Correspondence should be directed to Earle B. Amey, U.S. Geological Survey, National Center 983, Reston, Virginia 20192.     

Producer responsibility in a sustainable development context: ecological modernisation or industrial ecology?

The concept of producer responsibility has become a major tenet of EU waste management policy. It forms part of an effort to set a regulatory context for firms supportive of sustainable development. Two contrasting notions of the theory and implementation of sustainable development are ecological modernisation and industrial ecology. Ecological modernisation emphasises economic development and technological advances, within a suitable policy framework. Industrial ecology, by contrast, emphasises inter-firm cooperation and voluntary compliance inspired by eco-efficiency savings. Recently, however, industrial ecologists have shown greater interest in the potential for policy implementation. With aims such as increasing recovery of value from waste, creating a demand for recycled materials, and decreasing the potential harmful effects of waste, the producer responsibility directives can be seen as attempts to implement industrial ecology principles. This paper examines interrelationships of ecological modernisation and industrial ecology to understand the potential and shortcomings of the producer responsibility regulations as a means to promote waste minimisation through eco-design.     

The fate of waste in Hawaii: Technology assessment and solid waste planning in Hawaii, 1968–78

In this article I consider the initial period of solid waste management planning in the US state of Hawaii. The State encountered a number of economic and ecological controversies during its solid waste management planning, a process that was prompted by the US Environmental Protection Agency. Some issues, like project financing, were common across the US, while others, such as the potential of waste materials to reduce reliance on imported food and materials, were more unique to Hawaii. The controversies from this initial planning period were never quite fully resolved; as they lingered, they were interpreted differently across the Islands. Based on a close reading of government, advocacy group, waste industry and news media documents, I examine the controversies over solid waste management of the time and consider how the ‘dual nature’ of waste in Hawaii—simultaneously an ecological threat and (potential) economic input—shaped the adoption of solid waste management systems there. This article adds to an expanding literature examining infrastructure in environmental and technology histories.     

The Situation with College Express Packaging Waste and Recycling Recommendations—Taking the Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences as an Example

Questionnaires and interviews are employed in this paper to investigate and analyze the situation with respect to express packaging waste at the Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (GCASS). The survey results show that: (1) the campus receives a large number of express packages and there is, in turn, a considerable amount of packaging waste; (2) there are four main types of express packaging materials: paper packaging, plastic bags, wrapping tapes and package fillers; (3) neither the students nor the school perform well in the recycling of express packaging waste; (4) the samples investigated in this paper can be divided into four categories by cluster analysis, and the author infers from this that the colleges and universities with a large proportion of female students should pay more attention to the issue of recycling of express packaging waste. Several suggestions are presented based on the research results: (1) establishing a campus waste recycling system is the most efficient way to solve the problem of express packaging waste at GCASS; (2) we should advocate for green packaging and manage it from the source of waste generation because most of the express packaging material does not easily degrade naturally, and this represents a huge hidden danger to human health and the environment; (3) the school should cultivate student awareness of environmental protection. If education and penalties are implemented together, the recovery system will run better.     

黄山风景区旅游废弃物生态足迹历时性分析

历时性旅游废弃物演化规律及生态影响研究是制定旅游地可持续发展战略的基础性工作。以生态足迹理论为基础,利用1979—2018年相关统计资料与团队实地调研数据,对黄山风景区旅游废弃物生态足迹的长时间序列动态变化进行特征研究。结果表明（：1）黄山风景区旅游废弃物生态足迹演变具有明显的阶段性特征,共分为1979—1987年持续上升、1988—1996年小范围浮动式下降、1997—2005年剧烈振荡以及2006—2018年趋于稳定四个阶段。（2）黄山风景区旅游废弃物生态足迹的来源及构成占比随着当地垃圾处理方式及污染防治措施的变化而变化。其中,固体垃圾的足迹占比最多且达到52.18%～97.99%,并从显性与隐性两方面对当地生态环境产生影响。（3）随着黄山风景区旅游经济增长,区域资源利用效益持续升高,环境质量稳定改善,始终处于可持续发展状态。（4）黄山风景区的实践表明成熟的环境管理体制和不断改进的卫生治理措施可将旅游废弃物造成的生态影响控制在一定范围之内,从而为其他山岳型景区可持续发展提供有益参考。     

上海城市废弃物增长的环境库兹涅茨特征研究

对上海1978～2000年人均GDP与城市废弃物增长数据的拟合计算表明,上海城区废弃物增长与人均GDP之间存在比较明显的环境库兹涅茨二次曲线特征。理论计算显示:上海城市废弃物环境库兹涅茨曲线的转折点为人均GDP约33441元,对应的城市废弃物达到相应的理论计算峰值约779万吨。上海的人均GDP在2000年已经达到34547元,相应的城市废弃物清运量为741万吨,略为低于理论拟合计算峰值;说明上海城市废弃物增长的演变在2000年前后的一段时期,总体已经处于环境库兹涅茨曲线的理论峰值转折点附近。可以认为,随着上海人均GDP的持续增长,今后一段时期内上海城市废弃物的总量增长会逐步减缓,而建立体现生产者责任的市场调控废弃物管理公共政策,将有利于加快这一趋势。     

Mapping illegal domestic waste disposal potential to support waste management efforts in Queensland,Australia

Illegal disposal of waste is a significant management issue for contemporary governments because of the hazards posed to both human and ecosystem health. Understanding the complex distribution pattern of illegal waste and the range of economic, environmental and social factors influencing this distribution is valuable for improving the effectiveness and efficiency of waste management efforts. This article examines the applicability of mapping illegal waste disposal in the Sunshine Coast (Queensland, Australia) through the identification and integration of predictive spatial data in a geographic information system. A statistical model of illegal waste disposal was developed using a binary logistic regression analysis to identify explanatory variables suitable for predicting the distribution of illegal waste. Five statistically significant explanatory variables were identified through this analysis: population density, primary land use, distance to the nearest road, waste facility and roadside amenity. The generated statistical model had a predictive success of 86.1% with all indicators suggesting good model fit (χ² = 474.3, P = 0 with df = 22) across the study area. Standardised spatial data on each explanatory variable were combined using a weighted linear combination analysis and the results were classified into five categories from very low to very high illegal waste disposal potentials using the equal interval method. The resultant mapping identified 6.9% of the study area as having very high illegal waste disposal potential, and subsequent validation indicated that 32.9% of known illegal waste disposal sites were located within these areas.     

A Study of Food Waste in the Catering Industry in Beijing

Currently, the topic of food waste and its environmental impacts is attracting increasing attention among academic researchers. Based on an investigation of restaurants in Beijing, this study analyzes the quantities, structures, characteristics and costs of the agricultural resources related to food waste in the catering industry in Beijing. The results show that: (1) The average food waste per capita per meal is about 75.02 g (raw) for food away from home among Beijing urban residents, which means that about 10.52% of the food is wasted. (2) According to the quantitative ranking of different categories of food waste, vegetable is the most wasted, followed by meat, aquatic products, and grains. The foods in the other categories are wasted much less. (3) Food waste is affected by the restaurant type, as well as the number, gender, age, education level, and consumption motivation of the consumers. (4) Based on the estimated food waste per capita, about 417.92 thousand tons of food is wasted annually at the consumption stage in the catering industry in Beijing. This food waste amount is equivalent to approximately 765.53 tons of cereals which are wasted, and this represents 79.66% of cereals production and 13.15% of cereals consumption in Beijing. Estimated by the required land use, this amount of food waste means that the total production of approximately 166.12 thousand ha of arable land is being wasted in Beijing.     

The role of resource recycling

Resource recycling reduces the amount of waste discharged into the global environment. The waste reduction achieved by thorough recycling is substantial. Recycling is thus an inseparable part of global environmental protection.We human beings have used mineral resources since the birth of our species. The quantities and increasingly complex forms in which mineral resources have been used at different times in our prehistory and history serve as indices of civilization's advancement. But on the eve of the 21st century, environmental pollution and global warming stemming from spiraling resource and energy consumption pose serious dilemmas for humanity. The rapidity with which our resource consumption has increased approximates exponential growth.The worsening condition of the earth's environment because of massive resource and energy consumption is the result of activity at many stages of production, from the mining of mineral resources to the manufacture of finished products; the culmination of the process is the disposal of products as waste after their use. As we shall see from examples given in this paper, efforts are being made to solve this problem through recycling; but in many areas the problems remain incompletely solved or unsolved altogether.     

上海中心城区生活垃圾收运处置规划的多维度分析

生活垃圾收运处置规划是城市环卫规划与管理的重要内容,本文在剖析传统生活垃圾收运处置规划模式的基础上,从政策机制、规划设计、技术管理、实际操作4个维度探讨了上海中心城区生活垃圾收运处置规划的多维度分析方法,并以普陀区为例进行了实证研究。研究结果表明,多维度分析方法有助于将循环经济思想融入生活垃圾收运处置各个环节,促进其流程和步骤的有效衔接,在上海中心城区具有较好的应用前景。     

Solid Waste Management in Ohio*

State environmental protection agencies are being forced to assume more responsibility for solid waste management. Ohio took the lead in mandating the state control of waste by implementing a statewide, integrated solid waste management plan. This paper discusses the shift in management responsibility and key factors affecting variations in the amounts of waste managed by Ohio's 48 solid waste management districts. Accessibility, population characteristics, location, and open landfill availability are factors that influence managed volumes of solid waste.     

Spatial Patterns of Hazardous Waste Generation and Management in the United States

Hazardous waste is generated in the production of almost all consumer goods, especially those that contain plastic. The United States is the world leader in generating hazardous waste with 214 million tons produced in 1995. The majority of this waste was wastewater generated by the fifty largest generating facilities, disproportionately concentrated along the western Gulf Coast. The largest facilities also treat most of their waste on site, particularly wastewater. Most smaller generators send waste an average of 200 miles for treatment or disposal. Among both citizens and state governments there is resistance to local siting of waste facilties. Local resistance has convinced businesses or government agencies to look elsewhere to site a proposed facility. State efforts to directly control the flow of hazardous waste have not been successful due to court challenges from industry and subsequent decisions that state restrictions violate the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. Taxes on both in‐state and out‐of‐state waste have proven effective at reducing in‐state waste disposal.     

英国废弃物管理的战略框架—目标、措施与启示

对英国废弃物管理战略形成过程的系统分析表明，充分的公众参与、一体化的链式管理体系以及市场激励手段的运用是英国废弃物管理战略的显著特点；同时英国废弃物管理的实践经验，如政府对废弃物管理的职能公共化、废弃物产生者的责任主体化以及废弃物收集处置服务市场化等，对我国废弃物管理具有重要的启示和借鉴。     

Efficient use of resources: urban waste ash and soil fertility on the Jos Plateau, Nigeria

Waste disposal constitutes an acute problem in numerous African cities. One solution could lie in the recycling of the nutrient-rich waste into agriculture taking place in and around cities. Farmers involved in vegetable production around Jos, Nigeria, have developed a sophisticated soil fertility management strategy combining inorganic fertilizers, manure and urban waste ash. This paper: (1) investigates the socio-economic constraints linked to obtaining scarce organic inputs, particularly urban waste ash and the health hazards (particularly heavy metal contamination of soil and crops) caused by using this ash and (2) suggests ways to improve use of this important resource.     

旅游废弃物的环境库兹涅茨效应分析——以黄山风景区为例

旅游废弃物的资源消耗性与环境吸纳性, 是其产生环境与生态影响的根本原因。文章以黄山风景区为例, 利用1979-2010 年的固态、液态、气态3 类6 种旅游废弃物的排放量指标的时间序列数据, 进行旅游废弃物的环境库兹涅茨曲线拟合检验及其效应分析。结果表明:(1) 固态与液态旅游废弃物的排放量与旅游发展之间具有环境库兹涅茨倒U型曲线关系, 而气态废弃物则不具有。(2) 固体废弃物排放量的倒U型曲线的转折点为4596.01 t, 液态的污水与粪便的转折点分别为731491.46 t, 15866.43 t, 转折点时间在2015 年。(3) 科技应用对改善景区空气质量的作用较大, 万元旅游收入的能耗每下降1%, SO₂、NO₂、PM₁₀ 值分别下降3.38%、4.25%、0.78%;环保规制对景区水体的质量控制作用明显, 污水达标排放率每提高1%, 地表水的COD值下降3.41%。(4) 旅游废弃物的排放不一定必然造成风景区环境质量的下降, 调整产业结构、加大科技应用与强化环保规制, 是控制旅游废弃物环境污染与生态影响的关键手段。     

西宁市环境问题及可持续发展对策

西宁市现代工业迅速发展,城市规模日益扩大,城市化水平不断提高。与此同时,城市环境问题也日益突出。本文详细论述了西宁市目前发展中所面临的主要环境问题,并分析了其成因,指出走可持续发展之路是西宁市经济发展的迫切要求与必然选择,并提出可持续发展对策。     

Resource management and agriculture in the periurban interface of Kumasi,Ghana: Problems and prospects

This paper outlines pressures on agricultural land in periurban Kumasi, Ghana. A survey of agricultural practices underlines the recent and rapid transition from agricultural to urban land use in the periurban interface, and shows how farmers are reacting by reducing fallow periods. Farmers are also intensifying agriculture near streams and rivers through increased use of irrigation, in response to growing urban markets for a wider range of vegetables. We identify specific problems of water resource pollution and waste management, with particular reference to farmland irrigation. We report results of composting interventions as a community‐based waste management strategy. We consider integrated organic waste recycling as a generic strategy to help protect periurban natural resources, to enhance food production through nutrient recycling, and to improve community sanitation.     

东北屯人工湿地污水处理系统的设计与应用

从人工湿地规划设计的角度出发,依据地表水环境质量标准,以现有废弃渠道、坑塘为基础,通过开挖回填、调坡整治、基础压实等措施,建立了衡水市故城县郑口镇东北屯人工湿地污水处理系统。该系统包括前池、沉淀池、垂直流湿地、生态塘湿地、表面流湿地和蓄水池。探讨了人工湿地渗滤处理系统的主要设计参数;采用Freundlich公式、Kikuth公式和有关经验公式,分析了渗滤系统对污水生化需氧量、总氮、总磷的处理效果;研究了处理系统中垂直流、生态塘渗流和表面流的污染物去除率;针对水质、水量和环境温度3个主要因素进行了敏感性分析,给出了渗滤系统敏感性分析结果,并与湿地去污实验结果进行了比较,变化趋势基本一致。研究结果表明:①人工湿地规划设计应进行敏感性分析,以便更好地制定系统的控制运行预案;②湿地出水口高度应能够调节,以便控制湿地床体的"饱和"状态,充分发挥湿地渗滤、微生物的作用;③北方人工湿地的去污效果,受季节性影响较大,应采取塑料大棚或秸秆覆盖进行保温,在冬季,塑料大棚能够使湿地温度维持在13.3℃以上,日照时间基本不减少,湿地植物可正常生长;④当进水的生化需氧量浓度超过75mg/L时,应减小进水负荷,控制污染物总量在湿地高效处理范围内;⑤当日污水处理量超过3000m3/d时,应提高集污渠、前池、沉淀池的临时蓄存水位。