How willing are residents to accept sustainable energy from food waste generated by anaerobic digestion projects?

Abstract

The increasing demand for local anaerobic waste-to-energy projects triggered by citizens' environmental consciousness has forced communities, practitioners, and academicians worldwide to prioritize this subject. This research extends the theory of planned behavior (TPB) model with egoistic value. This study assessed residents' willingness to accept energy from food waste via anaerobic digestion (AD) projects. This study compares the new research framework with the original TPB framework. Using 408 questionnaires from Chinese residents in Jiangsu Province, hypothetical statements were assessed using a covariance-based structural equation model (CB-SEM). Egoistic values influenced all TPB constructs. The study found that TPB constructs mediated the association between egoistic value and residents' willingness to accept energy from food waste through AD projects. The findings suggest that the actual research framework can better explain outcomes than the original TPB model. This shows that the actual framework is more effective in understanding residents’ willingness to accept energy from food waste through AD projects. Policymakers and investors should communicate the health benefits of energy from food waste via anaerobic digestion schemes to citizens. Also, the policymakers or experts should focus on egoistic values or the health benefits of the citizens before they hurry to uptake the projects.