Post-consumer waste

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources:  –  ·  ·  · scholar · JSTOR (September 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Part of a series on
Pollution
WikiProject Environment WikiProject Ecology
show Air pollution Acid rain Air quality index Atmospheric dispersion modeling Chlorofluorocarbon Exhaust gas Haze Indoor air Internal combustion engine Global dimming Global distillation Ozone depletion Particulates Persistent organic pollutant Smog Aerosol Soot Volatile organic compound
show Biological pollution Biological pollution Genetic pollution
show Electromagnetic pollution Light Ecological light pollution Overillumination Radio spectrum pollution
show Natural pollution Ozone Radium and radon in the environment Volcanic ash Wildfire
show Noise pollution Transportation Land Water Air Rail Sustainable transport Urban Sonar Marine mammals and sonar Industrial Military Abstract Noise control
show Radiation pollution Actinides Bioremediation Fission product Nuclear fallout Plutonium Poisoning Radioactivity Uranium Electromagnetic radiation and health Radioactive waste
show Soil pollution Agricultural pollution Herbicides Manure waste Pesticides Land degradation Bioremediation Defecation Electrical resistance heating Guideline values Phytoremediation
show Solid waste pollution Biodegradable waste Brown waste Electronic waste Battery recycling Food waste Green waste Hazardous waste Biomedical waste Chemical waste Construction waste Lead poisoning Mercury poisoning Toxic waste Industrial waste Lead smelting Litter Mining Coal mining Gold mining Surface mining Deep sea mining Mining waste Uranium mining Municipal solid waste Garbage Nanomaterials Plastic pollution Microplastics Packaging waste Post-consumer waste Waste management Landfill Thermal treatment
show Space pollution Satellite
show Thermal pollution Urban heat island
show Visual pollution Air travel Clutter (advertising) Traffic signs Overhead power lines Vandalism
show Water pollution Agricultural wastewater Diseases Eutrophication Firewater Freshwater Groundwater Hypoxia Industrial wastewater Marine debris Monitoring Nonpoint source pollution Nutrient pollution Ocean acidification Oil spill Pharmaceuticals Septic tanks Sewage Septic tanks Pit latrine Shipping Stagnation Sulfur water Surface runoff Turbidity Urban runoff Water quality
show Lists Diseases Most polluted cities
Category (By country)  Environment portal  Ecology portal
v t

Post-consumer waste is a waste type produced by the end consumer of a material stream; that is, where the waste-producing use did not involve the production of another product.

The terms of pre-consumer and post-consumer recycled materials are not defined in the ISO standard number 14021 (1999) but pre-consumer and post-consumer materials are. These definitions are the most widely recognized and verified definitions as used by manufacturers and procurement officers worldwide.

Quite commonly, it is simply the waste that individuals routinely discard, either in a waste receptacle or a dump, or by littering, incinerating, pouring down the drain, or washing into the gutter.

Post-consumer waste is distinguished from pre-consumer waste, which is the reintroduction of manufacturing scrap (such as trimmings from paper production, defective aluminum cans, etc.) back into the manufacturing process. Pre-consumer waste is commonly used in manufacturing industries, and is often not considered recycling in the traditional sense.

Types[]

Post-consumer waste consists of:

• packaging
• parts that are not needed, such as fruit skins, bones in meat, etc.
• undesired things received, e.g.:
  • advertising material in the mailbox
  • a flyer received in the street without having the opportunity to refuse
  • dust, weeds, fallen leaves, etc.
• things one no longer needs, e.g. a magazine that has been read, things replaced by new versions, clothes out of fashion, remaining food that one cannot keep or does not want to keep
• broken things, things no longer working, spoiled food, worn-out clothes, clothes which no longer fit
• outgrown items toys, clothing, books, schoolwork
• disposables such as Kleenex and finished batteries
• human waste, waste of pets, waste water from various forms of cleaning
• "post-life waste"
  • one's body or ashes
  • things people do not want and cannot sell
  • broken/unused cars
  • items that cannot be used

Legal issues[]

In many countries, such as the United States, there is no reasonable expectation of privacy in post-consumer waste once it leaves the consumer's home. Anyone can search it, including the police, and any incriminating evidence recovered can be used at trial. This doctrine was established in The California v. Greenwood case, in which the U.S. Supreme Court held that there is no common law expectation of privacy for discarded materials. This has since led people to argue the legality of taking post-consumer waste for salvage value.^[1]

Excessive Waste[]

Especially within the food system, there is a lot of waste occurring at the consumer end. Post-consumer waste accounts for a large amount of food that is wasted. This can be attributed to many reasons, one of which being the way in which food is labeled. According to a study published in 2020, the confusing labeled of use by, consume by, or sell by dates are a significant reason why food is wasted at such a high volume when the food is otherwise entirely edible.^[2] Another way is the way that food is used once it reaches the average consumer household due to many factors, with the main factors being social, behavioral, and personal purchasing habits. Additionally, each of those factors influence each other and affect the amount of food that is wasted per person.^[3]

See also[]

• Retail hazardous waste

References[]