Eco-efficiency assessment of municipal solid waste services: Influence of exogenous variables

Improving the eco-efficiency of municipalities in the provision of municipal solid waste (MSW) services is fundamental in the context of a circular economy. This study evaluates the eco-efficiency of a sample of Spanish municipalities, integrating the total cost as input, recyclable waste as desirable output, and unsorted waste as undesirable output. Following a pioneering approach, the weighted Russell directional distance model (a non-radial data envelopment analysis model) was employed, which allowed us to obtain a global inefficiency score and individual inefficiency scores for each variable integrated in the model. In the second stage of analysis, the potential factors affecting the previously computed ineffi-ciency scores were investigated. The results indicated that one third of the municipalities evaluated were eco-efficient in the provision of MSW services with the total cost being the variable in which the munic-ipalities exhibited the best performance. Moreover, the size of the municipalities, population served, pop-ulation density, tourism, and availability of containers for separative collection of paper, glass, and plastic significantly affect the eco-efficiency of the municipalities. The findings of this study provide detailed information to support decision-making for the policy makers to improve the eco-efficiency of the munic-ipalities in managing MSW. (c) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.