RETHINKING ECONOMIC THEORY TO REDUCE MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE IN SRI LANKA

Abstract

According to national statistics based on standard economic theory, the Sri Lankan economy (GDP per capita) was growing at a rate of 5% in 2015. This paper intends to recognize the fact that environmental capital which is an essential component of the economy has been overlooked. Hence, this paper attempted to bring forward a somewhat realistic delineation of the Sri Lankan economy after factoring in the cost of ‘environmental depreciation’.

There is an overwhelming number of indicators of environmental depreciation [DKN]. However, the urgency of corrective action required in the waste management sector, predisposed this paper to consider haphazardous municipal waste management—especially open waste dumping—and greenhouse gas emissions as the predominant factors of DKN. In fact, the inclusion of DKN prompts that the economy growing at a rate of 5% in 2015 is an overstatement based on a ‘false domain’ of economic activity. One of the major notions in environmental economics is ‘environmental capital maintenance’—also referred as pollution abatement—that allows the economy to sustain. The maintenance of environmental capital incurs short-term net costs, but the long-term benefits far outweigh the economic, social and environmental costs. This paper considers fiscal policy to accomplish economicenvironmental sustainability and social well-being. However, it is done in a rather unorthodox manner—increasing taxes and spending the additional government revenue for environmental capital maintenance.

Prudent adoption of environmentally sound technology (EST) for waste treatment and reforestation are suggested as the maintenance efforts. The former effort would phase out uncontrolled disposal at dumpsites, while the later effort would sequester carbon and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emission loads partly emitted from dumpsites. Concurrently, the direct relationship observed between income level and rate of waste generation prompts the need to reform consumer attitude and behaviour. The reformation includes inculcating the importance of adopting environmentally sound practices such as the 3Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle. Moreover, Sri Lanka requires a holistic national policy framework related to environmentally sound MSWM system that would safeguard human health, maintain environmental quality, and accomplish sustainable development. With the rapid growth of population, as well as, escalating consumption and waste generation, environmentally “sound waste management is much more than merely desirable,… it is absolutely essential” (Wilson et al., 2015)