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Although Beijing has carried out municipal solid waste （MSW） source separation since 1996, it has largely been ineffective. In 2012, a ＂Green House＂ program was established as a new attempt for central sorting. In this study, the authors used material flow analysis （MFA） and cost benefit analysis （CBA） methods to investigate Green House＇s environment and economic feasibility. Results showed that the program did have significant environmental benefits on waste reduction, which reduced the amount of waste by 34%. If the Green House program is implemented in a residential community with wet waste ratio of 66%, the proportion of waste reduction can reach 37%. However, the Green House is now running with a monthly loss of 1982 CNY. This is mainly because most of its benefits come from waste reduction （i.e., 5878 CNY per month）, which does not turn a monetary benefit, but is instead distributed to the whole of society as positive environmental externalities. Lack of government involvement, small program scale, and technical/managerial deficiency are three main barriers of the Green House. We, thus, make three recommendations： involve government authority and financial support, expand the program scale to separate 91.4 tons of waste every month, and use more professional equipment/technologies. If the Green House program can successfully adopt these suggestions, 33.8 tons of waste can be reduced monthly, and it would be able to flip the loss into a profit worth 35034 CNY.

This study sought to investigate household solid waste separation practices in the Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana. Specifically, the study examined previous and existing solid waste separation practices, challenges associated with household separation of solid waste and willingness of households to separate waste. Employing a descriptive research design and a mixed-method approach, a multi-stage sampling method was used to obtain data from 215 household respondents and 7 keys informants. Data for the study were gathered through interview guide, questionnaires, and observation across low, middle and highincome communities over a period of 2 months from 6th June, 2016 to 8th August, 2016. The study found that most residents, regardless of their residential income zones, rarely separate their solid waste. However, there were general indications of residents’ willingness to separate waste at source, especially when there is demand and market for the separated waste. Major challenges that were identified to impede future solid waste separation among respondents include low demand for separated waste because there is no waste recycling plant in the metropolis as well as residents’ inability to afford waste separation bins. To promote and facilitate household solid waste separation programmes, the study recommends that the central government and Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly (CCMA) in conjunction with their development partners should assist in the provision of waste separation bins. In addition, CCMA, within its entrusted authority, should promulgate and enforce by-laws to regulate the waste separation process.

A circular economy has become the prominent business model for integrated waste management globally. The need to go circular has been a policy agenda for most governments toward environmental sustainability. The agenda to encourage smart production of goods and services has called for the utilization of closed-loop supply chain (CLSC) among manufacturing companies. The study explored circular economy practices and their implication for environmental sustainability in third world nations using Ghana as a study location. The study examined the extent to which CE has been practiced among producers of goods and services using waste disposal methods as indicators. Adopting the environmental sustainability framework coupled with explorative research design, the study assessed how the various stakeholders perceive CE as a tool for combating waste management crises in third world nations. The theory is suitable for the study because proper waste disposal whatsoever, is linked to human attitude and it takes good governance and laws to bring sanity toward waste management. Using structured questionnaires, face-to-face interviews, field surveys, and observation, data was collected, collated, analyzed, and presented with the aid of tables and charts. It was revealed that the majority of the producers of goods and services have little or no knowledge about CE and as such some of them practice CE without knowing. Pictures from some shops and waste disposal depots indicate that the management of waste, especially plastics and e-waste, is in shambles and most of these wastes end up in gutters, public drains, and open lots. The circular economy is seen as an integrated business model that puts together all key stakeholders in the business cycle including the central government. The involvement of the central government is to ensure the smooth application and enforcement of laws needed to check the activities of manufacturers. The principles of CLSC are useful in CE to create a reverse technological facility that tracks the supplied goods to ensure that used goods that are of no value to consumers are brought back to the manufacturer with the aim of recycling for the benefit of humankind and the environment. It was acknowledged that waste producers and managers do not have any clear-cut policies toward CE and there is no motivation for those eager to go circular in Ghana. The study reveals that scrap dealers have contributed immensely to closing the waste loop in the autoparts industry but not without challenges. Though plastic waste from sachet and bottled water producers was seen to have been managed poorly, e-waste management is worst, posing much threat to repairers of TV sets and fridges as most of them have had their shops flooded with these wastes. Lack of waste sorting is one of the biggest factors hindering sustainable CE practices in Ghana. Ghana has only one waste management company (the Zoomlion Company Ltd) responsible for collecting and disposing of waste and ineffective alliance from the government has made them unproductive. Based on the waste recovery model, the study recommends a specialized fiscal policy to regulate the producers of waste such that those with CE measures get a low tax bracket. Graphical abstract

Currently, waste management classification is a critical topic that concerns not only environmental protection, but also the advancement of a circular economy. To address this issue within the context of a circular economy, this study develops an uncooperative triumvirate paradigm consisting of “central regulation, local promotion, and universal participation.” The model analyzes the strategy choices of both the central and local governments while using an evolutionary game method to encourage residents to promote waste separation. Using numerical simulations, this study examines the variables that impact the strategy choices of the three parties over time. The results show that (1) the desire of the central government, local governments, and citizens to engage has varying effects on each of these entities; the conduct of local government is significantly influenced by the preparedness of the central government, but residents’ behavior is comparatively less influenced by the central government’s intention; in comparison, it is mainly affected by psychological expectations of income and expenditure; (2) the impact of the local government and residents on each other is characterized by an unbalanced relationship, with the local government being more sensitive to residents’ willingness to participate and changes in policy support being more sensitive; and (3) residents show more sensitivity to incentive funds, compensation, penalties, and benefit distribution coefficients. To promote waste separation in China, it is crucial to establish a reasonable expectation of ecological civilization, establish an efficient mechanism for environmental protection supervision, refine local waste separation programs, increase local governments’ responsibility for promoting them, ensure legal methods for universal participation, and improve the regulatory mechanism for universal participation to protect the environment. In addition, it is essential to improve the education system for waste separation and continue research related to waste separation.

The Moratuwa Woodworking Industry Cluster (MWIC) is a geographically concentrated cluster of over 1,600 small-to-medium scale wood-based manufacturing and retail facilities in Sri Lanka. Firms include furniture manufacturers, carpentry shops, sawmills, and integrated sawmills. The concept of industrial symbiosis explores the synergies between industrial facilities to exchange energy, water, by-products, and waste to achieve a higher efficiency in resource utilization. This research was undertaken to address the lack of quantitative information on wood residues generated within the MWIC. A survey of 180 primary and secondary wood product manufacturers was undertaken to quantify MWIC firm by-product production and consumption of wood residues to establish a baseline for possible end use and waste synergies. The total population of enterprises generating wood waste is 730; retail facilities are not included. Sawmills produce approximately 66% of the 6,490 MT of MWIC's monthly wood residue generation, with the balance produced by carpentry and integrated enterprises. Teak ( Tectona grandis ) and mahogany ( Swietenia macrophylla ) are the dominant species used in the MWIC, accounting for most of the wood waste. Three main types of wood waste were identified in the survey: sawdust (76.5%), boards with significant wane (16.5%) unusable for further products, and offcuts (6.9%). Only 55% of the wood waste generated in MWIC is currently used; the remaining 45% is taken to landfills or disposed of in other ways, such as discarded in waterways or other nonapproved locations. Improved wood waste sorting by type at the mill level and aggregated wood waste within the MWIC was determined to increase the usability of wood waste as potential inputs in other wood manufacturing sectors in the MWIC.

This paper examines how a collaborative and holistic design and operation framework can drive building decarbonization through case study. In Hong Kong’s evolving real estate landscape, developers of new commercial developments are striving to be carbon-efficient by incorporating sustainable infrastructure from the early stages. However, tenant participation is crucial for successful decarbonization, as they consume up to 50% of electricity in the building life cycle and contribute to significant carbon footprint through water usage and debris waste. The case study of AIRSIDE, a 178,000m 2 commercial development in Hong Kong’s central business district, demonstrates an approach to accelerate decarbonization. AIRSIDE goes beyond traditional measures by implementing tenant-focused strategies like smart waste sorting and utility sub-metering. Furthermore, AIRSIDE adopts the net positive lease incentive scheme and a carbon-tracking smart platform to track and quantify tenant emissions, fostering a common goal of carbon reduction. The building’s collaborative spirit in decarbonization is evident through partnerships with cross-sector green practitioners, which create win-win opportunities such as developing upcycled fabric as fit-out material. AIRSIDE stands out as a unique decarbonization pioneer, constantly testing on innovations from design to operations. This paper emphasizes the critical role of awareness and momentum in achieving effective carbon reduction within the built environment, adopting a cross-sectoral approach to decarbonization.