Global study finds older people in Brazil more likely to separate waste than younger people

The new report, A World of Waste: risks and opportunities in household waste management, is based on data on waste disposal from the latest edition of the World Risk Poll, produced by Lloyd’s Register Foundation, in consultation with waste management experts from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Engineering X. The data was collected by global pollster Gallup, who conducted 147,000 interviews in 142 countries and territories around the world, and found that some regions, including Brazil, are home to sharp age divides in waste separation.

In Brazil the gap between those who separate household waste aged 15 to 29 and those aged 65 and over is 34 percentage points (41% for 15-29 and 75% for over 65s respectively) - the biggest gap in the world. 

On a global scale, people between the ages of 15 and 29 are just as likely to separate their waste as not (47% each). Separating waste is more common among the over-65 group, 60% of whom report doing so. This places Brazil above the global average for the percentage of over 65s separating their waste. 

The report positions separation as “an important first step to ensuring safe and sustainable disposal.” However, the benefits cannot be fully realised unless there is adequate collection infrastructure for household waste, which is highlighted as crucial in preventing disposal methods that harm people's health and the environment, such as open dumping or open burning. In Brazil, over three quarters (89%) of people have their household waste collected.

For household waste collection to provide the most value, waste must first be separated into different containers depending on the materials involved. Separating waste can directly contribute to meeting climate mitigation goals through reducing greenhouse emissions and conserving natural resources. This is why the practice is critical in maximising the potential value of recycling and reducing the volume of waste entering landfills. 

These findings are set against a backdrop of a warning in the report regarding the global scale of uncontrolled waste disposal. Globally, more than two in five people (41%) dispose of their waste in an uncontrolled manner while only a third (33%) of global households both separate their waste and have it collected. 14% of households globally say they use open burning to dispose of their waste.

The report suggests that the development of better collection infrastructure that leads to controlled disposal is an urgent priority. 

Nancy Hey, Director of Evidence and Insight at Lloyd’s Register Foundation, said: “Safe and sustainable waste disposal is a form of critical infrastructure, whether for household waste or the decommissioning of major engineering projects. In Brazil the majority of households already have their waste collected, which means there is an opportunity for government and residents to work together to improve sustainability further by separating waste before disposal.

“These generational differences in waste separation behaviour provide useful insights, by highlighting potential areas of action – either through education or incentives. However, these measures can only work if the right infrastructure to deal with recyclables post-collection is put in place.”