Zero Waste to Landfill: an Unacknowledged Supermegaproject

Authors

  • Robert Krausz
  • Kenneth FD Hughey Professor of Environmental Management , Lincoln University
  • Roy Montgomery Senior Lecturer and Head of Department of Environmental Management, Lincoln University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.34900/lpr.v5i1-2.747

Abstract

Zero Waste is a global movement focused on replacing linear resource-to-waste systems with circular systems found elsewhere in nature, and Zero Waste to Landfill (ZWtL) is a specific interpretation implying the total elimination of residual disposal. Local governments worldwide have declared ZWtL goals with specific deadlines; however, to date none of these initiatives have proven successful. A grounded case study of ZWtL campaigns was conducted to investigate this chronic failure. The results indicate that ZWtL is an unacknowledged supermegaproject: requiring extremely deep and unprecedented change and sacrifice across all sectors, yet destined for failure because proponents fail to recognize the scope of the task and plan accordingly. Strategies for addressing waste upstream are critically absent, with insufficient downstream measures such as recycling the prevailing norm – reinforced by a consistent preference for technical solutions over fundamental behavior change.

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Author Biographies

Kenneth FD Hughey, Professor of Environmental Management , Lincoln University

Ken Hughey is a Professor of Environmental Management at Lincoln University. His research interests involve environmental perceptions, water resources management, climate change, and tourism. He is the project leader of the Public Perceptions of New Zealand’s Environment biennal study which is ongoing since 2000, and has recently co-authored the article Linking Tourism Into Emergency Management Structures to Enhance Disaster Risk Reduction, released in June 2013.

Roy Montgomery, Senior Lecturer and Head of Department of Environmental Management, Lincoln University

Roy Montgomery is a Senior Lecturer and Head of Department of Environmental Management at Lincoln University. His research interests include planning theory and practice, environmental policy, conservation, community emergency response planning, and participatory democracy. He has recently co-authored the article Education for Sustainability in New Zealand (2011), and authored the article Dreamfields Developments: Towns That Never Were in Early Canterbury (2010).

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How to Cite

Krausz, R., Hughey, K. F., & Montgomery, R. (2014). Zero Waste to Landfill: an Unacknowledged Supermegaproject. Lincoln Planning Review, 5(1-2), 10–26. https://doi.org/10.34900/lpr.v5i1-2.747

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 1-2 (2013)

Section

Peer Reviewed Articles

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