Vital Waste Graphics 3

GHOSTCOSTS I: THEENVIRONMENT WASTE COSTS Whereas some local, easily identifiable pollution caused by inappropriate waste management may appear in economic calculations, no account is currently made for most impacts on the envi- ronment. Much as climate change, damage to ecosystem services or biodiversity is often difficult to trace to its source.

Waste external costs. . .

The costs of climate change and biodiversity losses are less intuitive, more difficult to assess, but from a public perspective, they are considerable (and far from negligible for the private sector).

L A ND F I L L , I NC I N E R A T I ON A ND O T H E R WA S T E - R E L A T E D A C T I V I T I E S

EMISSIONS TO SOIL AND WATER

LAND CONSUMPTION

EMISSIONS TO AIR

DISAMENITIES

Landfill leachates and incineration ashes Mercury Lead Cadmium Arsenic Chromium Heavy metals Asbestos

Incineration fumes

Landfill gases:

Odour Visual impact

The space dedicated to landfill and other waste management or confinement sites is lost for farming, housing and leisure.

Carbon dioxide Nitrogen oxides Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) Methane

Particulate matters Dioxins Furans Sulphur dioxide

Pests (insects, rats) Heavy vehicle trafic Noise

Radioactivity

Endangered resources

Climate change

Loss of value (land, house)

Land competition

Loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services

Contaminated rivers, ocean, aquifers Contaminated soil and cropland Air pollution Sanitation problems

Conflicts related to environmental justice (poor vs. rich neighbourhoods) and land competition

Disasters More infectious diseases Salinisation of freshwater Agricultural changes

Freshwater and food resources at stake

Quality of life impaired

Drop in yield

Health consequences

Climate change costs

Liver, kidney dysfunctions Breast feeding

POSSIBLE WAYS OF MEASURING THESE COSTS [ EXAMPLES ]

Respiratory system impairment Blood and nervous disorders Cancers

Disasters casualties (live losts)

Biodiversity costs

Cost of disamenities

Disasters insurance costs

Cost of remediation Loss of "ecosystem services"

Volume or price of yield losses

Health costs

Price of land Loss of land revenue Cost of remediation Impact on tourism

Humanitarian and institutional health expenses (famines, disasters)

Health expenditures related to psychological disorders (including depression)

Cost of drinkable water alternative

Health spending Years of Life Lost (YOLL) approach Value of Statistical Life (VSL) approach Lives saved by remediation

Famine casualties

Cost of litigation Years of proceedings

Sea-level rise: Number of refugees Price of land lost

... a (dry but) useful approach Source: Emmanuelle Bournay from various sources including A Study on the Economic Valuation of Environmental Externalities from Landfill Disposal and Incineration of Waste , European Commission, 2000; Stern Review Report on the Economics of Climate Change, 2006; The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) Study, 2011.

Cost of conflicts over land

VITAL WASTE GRAPHICS 3 24