Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34792674›Full record

ReviewEnvironmental geochemistry and health2023

The waste ban in China: what happened next? Assessing the impact of new policies on the waste management sector in China.

Na Song, Iain McLellan, Wei Liu, Zhenghua Wang, Andrew Hursthouse

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Environmental geochemistry and health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Na SongSchool of Computing, Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Paisley, PA1 2BE, UK.
Iain McLellanSchool of Computing, Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Paisley, PA1 2BE, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5137-6321
Wei LiuWaste Disposal Supervisory Office of Zhuzhou, Zhuzhou, 412000, China.
Zhenghua WangHunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Shale Gas Resource Utilization, Hunan University of Science and Technology, Xiangtan, 411201, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3757-1371
Andrew HursthouseSchool of Computing, Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Paisley, PA1 2BE, UK. andrew.hursthouse@uws.ac.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3690-2957

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The 2017 ban on the waste import and new policies for the waste management sector in mainland China had wide-spread impact. After decades of poor environmental and public health impacts from the sector, a study is needed which focuses on policies updates and waste management. This provides a direction for the survival of local waste management industries and consider similarities with the ban promulgated in China on the restriction of waste import from other countries. We review the waste management situation in China before national legislation prevented the import of waste, highlight the status of landfill mining in China, and review the dynamics of domestic policies before and after the promulgation of the ban in China. The impact of the COVID19 pandemic on the waste management system is starting to emerge, providing both challenges and opportunities for the sector in China. We see the impact of the ban on the range of imported waste and domestically generated materials. The ban results in price increases for domestic recycling that forces companies to introduce more formal recycling processes and to drive the consumption behaviours to more reasonable and environmentally friendly options. The driver in China is to reduce pollution in the environment and improve health, but a negative impact has been from increased landfill mining which has impeded the original aim of the waste ban and requires further technological development. The dynamic of domestic policies in China shows higher level of activity of updates and revisions or introduction of new policies from 2015 onwards and the concept of 'zero waste cities' brings new hope for improvement of the Chinese waste management system. The pandemic also suggests an important step to establish sustainable management systems despite evidence of increased "fly-tipping". The rebound of the waste ban may have stimulated in the short term negative impacts on local environments both in China and internationally.

Indexed as

COVID-19Waste ManagementChinaEnvironmental PollutionHumansPublic HealthRecyclingCOVID19 impact on wasteSmall businessSolid wasteWaste importWaste regulation

Identifiers

PMID34792674
PMCPMC8600907

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.