How Much Does It Cost to Choose Urban Solid Waste Management in Minas Gerais?

Abstract

This study aimed to empirically analyze the main determinants of per capita cost of urban solid waste (USW) in municipalities of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Multiple linear regression models were estimated to identify relevant variables explaining the management costs of urban solid waste in 490 municipalities in 2019. The variables analyzed included per capita cost of urban solid waste, collection executed by public agent, collection executed by private agent, mixed collection execution, absence of selective collection, and municipality size. The results indicate that public execution leads to the greatest reduction in USW costs, followed by mixed execution and finally private execution. Additionally, this study finds that smaller cities incur higher per capita costs to the public sphere if they choose to delegate collection services to the private sector. It was concluded that USW costs in Minas Gerais in 2019 vary depending on the municipality's chosen method for waste collection service provision.