This paper mainly contributes to the literature by providing analyses of (1) how
municipal solid waste (MSW) management and related policy tools impact on
decoupling in strikingly ‘economic divided’ settings, such as Italy; consequently, the
paper provides very original insights on (2) spatial effects related to waste generation
and legal landfilling; and (3) convergence of waste performances between leaders and
those lagging behind (in our case, northern and southern areas of Italy, respectively).
Points (2) and (3) are almost unexplored in the economics of waste.
The analysis of waste performance drivers, spatial phenomena and convergence
are complementary; policy makers and waste managers need to know what is driving
performance and which among the significant drivers can be most easily influenced
by waste management actors. It is also necessary to know whether waste
management is dependent or not on regional spillovers and, finally, the degree of
convergence tells us whether those lagging behind are catching up or not.