“If You Want to Get Rid of Filth Diseases, You Must First Get Rid of the Filth”—The “Economic” Decision by a City Corporation to Collect Household Waste

Abstract

ABSTRACT The collection of household waste is now taken for granted. Such services have a cost, borne by local/central government or householders. Literature highlights such costs, also noting how householders can reduce them by recycling. Waste collection was not always a service offered to householders, with the first such services appearing from the mid-19th century. Although accounting history literature has explored accounting in cities and the public sector, research on how costs featured in the introduction of services such as waste removal appears scarce. This paper explores the decision to introduce waste collection to every household in an Irish city and the role of accounting and costs therein. Events around this decision are analyzed using a dual meaning of economic. The findings suggest a substantivist meaning of economic was paramount and costs were considered within a public health framing. JEL Classifications: M4; N9; R0.