Report looks at sustainable material and waste management strategies

Report looks at sustainable material and waste management strategies
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Researchers Ning Ai, Ph.D., and Nancey Green Leigh, Ph.D., FAICP (Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planners), authors of “Planning for Sustainable Material and Waste Management,” a new Planning Advisory Service (PAS) report from the American Planning Association (APA), say cities cannot be sustainable if they generate more waste than it can assimilate.

Ai is an assistant professor in the Department of Urban Planning and Policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago with a joint appointment at the Institute for Environmental Science and Policy. Her research focuses on urban environmental planning, material and waste management and system analysis of urban sustainability.

Leigh is a professor of city and regional planning at the Georgia Institute of Technology and associate dean for research in its College of Design. Leigh has published five books, including Planning Local Economic Development, sixth edition, as well as resources for planning practitioners. Her research focuses on sustainable economic development.

In their paper, Ai and Leigh advise planners to look beyond waste disposal to examine the entire life cycle of materials and products and to focus on material-centered systems and closed-loop programs to help communities understand how economic, environmental and social implications are interconnected.

Drawing from various studies and practices across the United States and beyond, they present six key strategies for creating a sustainable material and waste management program:

• Implement regulations across all environmental media instead of focusing solely on one specific type, such as land, water or air.
• Engage in infrastructure planning that addresses the local needs of material and waste management through the logistics chain.
• Take a more strategic approach to financing by addressing the costs and consequences of material and waste management.
• Create more green jobs by promoting R3 (reuse, recycle and remanufacture) activities.
• Balance equity and efficiency in material and waste management.
• Adopt emerging technologies and implement regulations for more efficient data collection and more effective waste diversion.

It’s important for planners to fully understand the nature of sustainable material and waste management to advise community leaders on how to reduce the impact of environmental hazards while improving economic development and promoting social equity, the authors say. “Planning for Sustainable Material and Waste Management” is intended to give planners the tools they need to work with smart technologies and gain stakeholder support at multiple agency levels.

Members of APA, which has offices in Chicago and Washington, have free digital access to “Planning for Sustainable Material and Waste Management” and the entire digital PAS report library. 

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Source: Recycling Today
Report looks at sustainable material and waste management strategies
<![CDATA[Researchers Ning Ai, Ph.D., and Nancey Green Leigh, Ph.D., FAICP (Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planners), authors of “Planning for Sustainable Material and Waste Management,” a new Planning Advisory Service (PAS) report from the American Planning Association (APA), say cities cannot be sustainable if they generate more waste than it can assimilate. Ai is an assistant professor in the Department of Urban Planning and Policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago with a joint appointment at the Institute for Environmental Science and Policy. Her research focuses on urban environmental planning, material and waste management and system analysis of urban sustainability. Leigh is a professor of city and regional planning at the Georgia Institute of Technology and associate dean for research in its College of Design. Leigh has published five books, including Planning Local Economic Development, sixth edition, as well as resources for planning practitioners. Her research focuses on sustainable economic development. In their paper, Ai and Leigh advise planners to look beyond waste disposal to examine the entire life cycle of materials and products and to focus on material-centered systems and closed-loop programs to help communities understand how economic, environmental and social implications are interconnected. Drawing from…