Social, political, and technological dimensions of the sustainability evaluation of a recycling network. A literature review

Abstract

The development and implementation of recycling networks seems to be a promising way to cope with and mitigate the environmental problems of waste. As a mandatory condition, recycling networks must guarantee the achievement of sustainability requirements. Since the first proposal of the TBL (Triple Bottom Line) in the early 1990s, some authors have suggested that this model should be extended to include more dimensions. Recent studies have proposed that for a system to be sustainable, it should not only include the economic, environmental, and social dimensions but must also consider technological and political aspects and their subsequent sustainability indicators for their evaluation. In regard to recycling networks, however, social, technological, and political dimensions are still to be formalized to facilitate their use when designing recycling networks or evaluating their impact. In order to understand how these social, political, and technological dimensions should be integrated into the sustainability evaluation process of a potential recycling network, a systematic literature review has been conducted. A total of 160 journal articles were selected and analyzed. Information was identified on the problem addressed, the recycling domain, the methodologies used, and the social, technological, and political aspects under consideration. A set of social, political, and technological indicators to be considered for the main recycling network problems (design and planning, decision-making and performance evaluation, provider selection, price, and coordination) is then proposed. The main contribution of this work lies in the understanding for future research of how to consider social, political, and technological aspects taking into account the most common problems addressed in a recycling network. At the same time, findings and research gaps have been derived from these results. This study provides a basis for future work oriented toward the holistic evaluation of sustainable recycling networks. • First literature review on the social, political, and technological dimensions of sustainability in the evaluation of recycling networks. • Five social orientations were identified being the 'Job creation' (worker-oriented indicator) the most used. • Five technological aspects were mapped, where 'Capacity of facilities' (process.oriented factor) stand out as the most used. • Five political aspects were addressed being the incentive/punishment policies (e.g subsidies and taxes) the most studied. • A set of factors are proposed for each dimension and problem addressed in recycling networks.