The Dirt

Orange-peel grapple flings a load of recycling

Discard Studies is an interdisciplinary field of research that takes systems of waste and wasting as its topic of study, including but beyond conventional notions of trash and garbage. To keep practitioners up to date, Discard Studies publishes The Dirt, a monthly compilation of recent publications, positions, opportunities, and calls for proposals in the field. Here is The Dirt for April 2023.

Special Note: Discard Studies offers a public Zotero library of references collected from The Dirt.

The Zotero library is updated with the publication of each new edition of The Dirt and can be found on the Resources page.

Anyone can access the Zotero library, whether or not they use Zotero software. For those not already familiar with Zotero, it is a free and open-source software. More about Zotero here.

Peer-reviewed Articles & Books

Note: If an article is behind a paywall, email the author. They are almost always authorized by copyright to distribute their own work.

We have begun posting the gender parity of The Dirt, especially given evidence that COVID-19 is increasing the skew in knowledge production to be ever more male, white, and childless. According to the Summers Gender Balance Assessment Tool, the bibliography for The Dirt in April 2023 is approximately 21.37% Women, 65.73% Men, and 12.9% Unknown.

  • Al-Hamaiedeh, Husam, et al. “Evaluating the In-Site Sorting of Solid Waste in Selected Educational Institutions – A Pilot Study.” Journal of Ecological Engineering, vol. 24, no. 5, May 2023, pp. 137–43, https://doi.org/10.12911/22998993/161617.
  • Asibey, Michael Osei, et al. “Workers Perception of and Coping with the Health Risks of Informal Electronic Waste Recycling in Ghana.” Local Environment, vol. 28, no. 3, Mar. 2023, pp. 379–95, https://doi.org/10.1080/13549839.2022.2145601.
  • Atzbach, Rainer. “The Garbage, the Castle, Its Lord & the Queen: A New View on Boringholm as a Failed Parvenu’s Site.” Danish Journal of Archaeology, vol. 12, no. 1, Feb. 2023, pp. 1–23, https://doi.org/10.7146/dja.v12i1.130856.
  • Baird, Melissa. “Waste Sits in Places: Post-Extractive Landscapes as Heritage.” Landscape as Heritage, Routledge, 2022. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781003195238-18/waste-sits-places-melissa-baird
  • Bernache-Pérez, Gerardo, et al. “Strategies to Strengthen Integrated Solid Waste Management in Small Municipalities.” Sustainability, vol. 15, no. 5, Jan. 2023, p. 4318, https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054318.
  • Binawan, Andang. “Garbage Care as a Way for Eco-Spiritual Care in a Multifaith Society in Indonesia.” Religions, vol. 14, no. 4, Apr. 2023, p. 509, https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14040509.
  • Cheng, Wanying. “Research on Garbage Sorting and Smart Bins.” Journal of Innovation and Development, vol. 2, no. 2, Mar. 2023, pp. 61–63, https://doi.org/10.54097/jid.v2i2.5914.
  • Chesnut, Michael, et al. “From Garbage to COVID-19: Theorizing ‘Multilingual Commanding Urgency’ in the Linguistic Landscape.” Multilingua, vol. 42, no. 1, Jan. 2023, pp. 25–53, https://doi.org/10.1515/multi-2022-0009.
  • Cisneros, Odile. “The Poetry of Garbage in Contemporary Brazilian Culture.” Literature Beyond the Human, Routledge, 2022.
  • Corvellec, Hervé, and Alexander Paulsson. “Resource Shifting: Resourcification and de-Resourcification for Degrowth.” Ecological Economics, vol. 205, Mar. 2023, p. 107703, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2022.107703.
  • de Sousa, Fabiula Danielli Bastos. “Consumer Awareness of Plastic: An Overview of Different Research Areas.” Circular Economy and Sustainability, Mar. 2023, https://doi.org/10.1007/s43615-023-00263-4.
  • Desmarais, Christian, et al. “The Unsanitary Other and Racism during the Pandemic: Analysis of Purity Discourses on Social Media in India, France and United States of America during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Anthropology & Medicine, vol. 30, no. 1, Jan. 2023, pp. 31–47, https://doi.org/10.1080/13648470.2023.2180259.
  • Dezhamkhooy, Maryam. “Wandering Islands1: Towards an Archaeology of Garbage-Based Settlements.” World Archaeology, vol. 0, no. 0, Feb. 2023, pp. 1–13, https://doi.org/10.1080/00438243.2023.2170910.
  • Dimitrijevic, Katarina. Visualising Plastic Ocean Pollution: Designing Waste Ontologies. Goldsmiths, University of London, 31 Jan. 2023, https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/33131/.
  • Dunbar-Hester, Christina. Oil Beach: How Toxic Infrastructure Threatens Life in the Ports of Los Angeles and Beyond. University of Chicago Press, 2023, https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/O/bo185167017.html.
  • Dunlop, Sarah. The Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health. no. 1, Mar. 2023, p. 23, https://doi.org/10.5334/aogh.4056.
  • Eid, Marwa, et al. “Smart Garbage Monitoring System Using IoT.” Journal of Artificial Intelligence and Metaheuristics, vol. Volume 2, no. Issue 2, Feb. 2023, pp. 29–38, https://doi.org/10.54216/JAIM.020203.
  • Eitel, Kathrin. Reshuffling Responsibility: Waste, Environmental Justice and Urban Citizenship in Cambodia. no. 1, Nov. 2022, p. 5, https://doi.org/10.5334/wwwj.87.
  • Eitel, Kathrin. “Oozing Matters: Infracycles of ‘Waste Management’ and Emergent Naturecultures in Phnom Penh.” East Asian Science, Technology and Society: An International Journal, vol. 15, no. 2, Apr. 2021, pp. 135–52, https://doi.org/10.1080/18752160.2021.1896123.
  • Fadillah, Farhan, and Tri Harjawati. “Landfill Existence Impact of on the Community Socio-Economic Condition.” International Journal of Advanced Energy, Life Science and Environment Sustainability, vol. 3, no. 2, 2023, http://amcs-press.com/index.php/ijaelses/article/view/147.
  • Fletcher, Robert. Failing Forward: The Rise and Fall of Neoliberal Conservation. Univ of California Press, 2023.
  • Ghaedrahmati, Zahra, et al. “Urban Informal Waste Recycling in Tehran: Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices towards Health Risks during Recycling Process.” Cleaner Waste Systems, vol. 4, Apr. 2023, p. 100064, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clwas.2022.100064.
  • Gómez-Maldonado, Alejandra, et al. “Barriers and Opportunities for Waste Pickers within Solid Waste Management Policy in Colombia.” Waste Management, vol. 163, May 2023, pp. 1–11, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2023.03.020.
  • Gonzaga, Elmo. “Supply Chain Capitalism in the Planetary Network Blockbuster.” Interventions, vol. 25, no. 3, Apr. 2023, pp. 370–90, https://doi.org/10.1080/1369801X.2021.2003225.
  • Hardestyariki, Dwi, and Syarifa Fitria. “Potential of Neptunia Oleracea L. as a Phytoremediation Agent for Petroleum Liquid Waste.” Journal of Ecological Engineering, vol. 24, no. 5, May 2023, pp. 88–94, https://doi.org/10.12911/22998993/161296.
  • Hesse, Arielle, et al. “The Data Treadmill: Water Governance and the Politics of Pollution in Rural Ireland.” Local Environment, vol. 28, no. 5, May 2023, pp. 602–18, https://doi.org/10.1080/13549839.2023.2169668.
  • Islam, Minhazul, et al. “Sucralose and Predicted De Facto Wastewater Reuse Levels Correlate with PFAS Levels in Surface Waters.” Environmental Science & Technology Letters, Apr. 2023, https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.estlett.3c00185.
  • Ito, Hiroshi, and Chisato Igano. “Bad or Worse? Applying Critical Theory to Explore the Impacts of Payatas Dumpsite Closure on the Former Waste Pickers.” Waste Management & Research, Jan. 2023, p. 0734242X221137821, https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242X221137821.
  • Izlar, Joel. “If We Just Plant the Seed”: Community Technology Centers, Community Organization, and Ecosocial Justice. PhD Dissertation, University of Georgia. https://esploro.libs.uga.edu/esploro/outputs/9949420829002959.
  • Kiessling, Tim, et al. “What Potential Does the EU Single-Use Plastics Directive Have for Reducing Plastic Pollution at Coastlines and Riversides? An Evaluation Based on Citizen Science Data.” Waste Management, vol. 164, June 2023, pp. 106–18, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2023.03.042.
  • Koskenniemi, Aino. “Say No to Shame, Waste, Inequality—and Leaks! Menstrual Activism in the Market for Alternative Period Products.” Feminist Media Studies, vol. 23, no. 1, Jan. 2023, pp. 19–36, https://doi.org/10.1080/14680777.2021.1948885.
  • Li, Zizi. “Digital Domestic (Im)Material Labor: Managing Waste and Self While Producing Closet Decluttering Videos.” Television & New Media, Jan. 2023, p. 15274764221150164, https://doi.org/10.1177/15274764221150163.
  • Lima, Maria Raquel Passos. “Residual Infrastructures: Colonialisms in Waste Management and Catador Politics.” Estudos Avançados, vol. 37, Mar. 2023, pp. 63–82, https://doi.org/10.1590/s0103-4014.2023.37107.005en.
  • Lindström, Kristina, and Åsa Ståhl. “Un/Making the Plastic Straw: Designerly Inquiries into Disposability.” Design and Culture, vol. 0, no. 0, Apr. 2023, pp. 1–23, https://doi.org/10.1080/17547075.2023.2187080.
  • Liu, Zixing, et al. “Garbage-Classification Policy Changes Characteristics of Municipal-Solid-Waste Fly Ash in China.” Science of The Total Environment, vol. 857, Jan. 2023, p. 159299, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159299.
  • Marchant, Danielle J., et al. “Contrasting the Effects of Microplastic Types, Concentrations and Nutrient Enrichment on Freshwater Communities and Ecosystem Functioning.” Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, vol. 255, Apr. 2023, p. 114834, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2023.114834.
  • Martins Soares Filho, Adauto, et al. “Improving the Quality of External Cause of Death Data in Brazil: Evaluation and Validation of a New Form to Investigate Garbage Codes.” Cadernos de Saúde Pública, vol. 39, Mar. 2023, p. e00097222, https://doi.org/10.1590/0102-311XEN097222.
  • Merewether, Jane, et al. “Unsettling ‘Reduce-Reuse-Recycle’: The Provocation of Wastepaper and ‘Discarding Well.’” The Journal of Environmental Education, vol. 54, no. 3, May 2023, pp. 199–212, https://doi.org/10.1080/00958964.2023.2179585.
  • Millar, Kathleen M. “Recycling as Refusing the End of the World: Thoughts on Climate Change from Rio’s Garbage Dump.” TDR, vol. 67, no. 1, Mar. 2023, pp. 91–95, https://doi.org/10.1017/S105420432200082X.
  • Mofokeng, R. P., et al. “The Future of Ocean Plastics: Designing Diverse Collaboration Frameworks.” ICES Journal of Marine Science, Apr. 2023, p. fsad055, https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsad055.
  • Molinos-Senante, Maria, et al. “Factors Influencing Eco-Efficiency of Municipal Solid Waste Management in Chile: A Double-Bootstrap Approach.” Waste Management & Research, vol. 41, no. 2, Feb. 2023, pp. 457–66, https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242X221122514.
  • Munro, Kirstin. Managing Household Waste. The Production of Everyday Life in Eco-Conscious Households. Bristol University Press, 2023, https://bristoluniversitypressdigital.com/display/book/9781529211481/ch005.xml.
  • Munten, Pauline, and Joëlle Vanhamme. “To Reduce Waste, Have It Repaired! The Quality Signaling Effect of Product Repairability.” Journal of Business Research, vol. 156, Feb. 2023, p. 113457, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.113457.
  • Newman, Joshua. “Narratives and Counter-Narratives of Political Strategy: Revisiting Australia’s Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme.” Australian Journal of Political Science, vol. 58, no. 1, Jan. 2023, pp. 88–104, https://doi.org/10.1080/10361146.2022.2133679.
  • Nguyen Cong Thuan, et al. “Methane Production from Food Garbage under the Batch and Semi-Continuous Anaerobic Digestion: Effect of Total Solid.” Journal of Ecological Engineering, vol. 24, no. 4, Apr. 2023, pp. 264–78, https://doi.org/10.12911/22998993/160508.
  • Oğuz, Abdulhalık, and Ömer Faruk Ertuğrul. “Determining the Fullness of Garbage Containers by Deep Learning.” Expert Systems with Applications, vol. 217, May 2023, p. 119544, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eswa.2023.119544.
  • Olofsson, Jennie. “Leakage: Being a Risk Object or an Object at Risk? Investigating Potential Synergies between Gender Studies and Discard Studies through the Concept of Risk.” Journal of Gender Studies, vol. 32, no. 2, Feb. 2023, pp. 144–52, https://doi.org/10.1080/09589236.2021.1953964.
  • Pathak, Gauri, and Mark Nichter. “Navigating Crises of Scale in the Anthropocene: A Note to Engaged Anthropologists.” Anthropology in Action, vol. 30, no. 1, Mar. 2023, pp. 24–32, https://doi.org/10.3167/aia.2023.300103.
  • Picard, Michael, et al. Wastiary: A Bestiary of Waste. UCL Press, 2023 (in press), https://www.research.ed.ac.uk/en/publications/wastiary-a-bestiary-of-waste and https://www.uclpress.co.uk/products/222018
  • Papadopoulos, Dimitris, Maria Puig de la Bellacasa, and Maddalena Tacchetti. Ecological Reparation: Repair, Remediation and Resurgence in Social and Environmental Conflict. Policy Press, 2023.
  • Policastro, Grazia, and Alessandra Cesaro. “Composting of Organic Solid Waste of Municipal Origin: The Role of Research in Enhancing Its Sustainability.” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 20, no. 1, Jan. 2023, p. 312, https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20010312.
  • Prorokova-Konrad, Tatiana. Plastics, Environment, Culture and the Politics of Waste. Edinburgh University Press, 2023, https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9781399511759/html.
  • Sainte-Rose, Bruno, et al. “Persistency and Surface Convergence Evidenced by Two Maker Buoys in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.” Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, vol. 11, no. 1, Jan. 2023, p. 68, https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse11010068.
  • Schneller, Andrew, et al. “Environmental Justice Is Exhausting: Five Decades of Air Pollution and Community Advocacy at Ezra Prentice Homes in Albany, New York.” Local Environment, vol. 27, no. 12, Dec. 2022, pp. 1514–35, https://doi.org/10.1080/13549839.2022.2113869.
  • Steenmans, Katrien, and Rosalind Malcolm. “Using Plastic Wastes to Exemplify Justice Dimensions of Extended Producer Responsibility.” Advances in Environmental and Engineering Research, vol. 4, no. 1, Mar. 2023, pp. 1–10, https://doi.org/10.21926/aeer.2301024.
  • Sukirno, et al. “The Implementation of Garbage Management Plan in Preventing Marine Pollution on Sultan Hasanuddin Training Ship.” AIP Conference Proceedings, vol. 2675, no. 1, Feb. 2023, p. 040003, https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0114171.
  • Sun, Qiongping, et al. “Cooking Methods Effectively Alter Perfluoroalkyl Substances and Nutrients in Cultured and Wild Bullfrogs.” Journal of Hazardous Materials, vol. 445, Mar. 2023, p. 130555, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2022.130555.
  • Varennes, Elodie, et al. “Upgrading Wastewater Treatment Plants to Urban Mines: Are Metals Worth It?” Resources, Conservation and Recycling, vol. 189, Feb. 2023, p. 106738, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2022.106738.
  • Villamarín Freire, Sara. “On the Uses of Waste.” Revista Canaria de Estudios Ingleses, no. 86, 2023, pp. 157–70, https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=8861798.
  • Walker, Tony R. “The Tropics Should Not Become the World’s Plastic Pollution Problem.” Journal of Tropical Futures, Apr. 2023, p. 27538931231165270, https://doi.org/10.1177/27538931231165273.
  • Wang Liangde. “Summary of the Current Research Situation of Marine Garbage Recovery.” Frontiers in Economics and Management, vol. 4, no. 3, Mar. 2023, pp. 87–93, https://doi.org/10.6981/FEM.202303_4(3).0010.
  • Wei, Yuanhao, et al. “Practically and Theoretically Efficient Garbage Collection for Multiversioning.” Proceedings of the 28th ACM SIGPLAN Annual Symposium on Principles and Practice of Parallel Programming, Association for Computing Machinery, 2023, pp. 66–78, https://doi.org/10.1145/3572848.3577508.
  • Xu, Mengmeng, and Boqiang Lin. “Accessing People’s Attitudes towards Garbage Incineration Power Plants: Evidence from Models Correcting Sample Selection Bias.” Environmental Impact Assessment Review, vol. 99, Mar. 2023, p. 107034, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eiar.2022.107034.

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