Drivers-pressures-state-impact-response framework of hazardous waste management in China

Abstract

Hazardous waste as a global issue closely links environmental pollution, public health, resource sustainability, and social governance. Its rapid increase and distinct drawbacks have threatened our eco-civilized planet. The Drivers-Pressures-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) framework can demonstrate how cultural, political, and economic behavior varies in an anthropogenic system. In this review, we use this systematic framework to examine China’s hazardous waste management venture and uncover the fundamental theory of man-land relationship. The key drivers (e.g., policy, technology, industry, and socioeconomic incentives) are equipped in a shareable manner, and these drivers can affect waste trends in each region depending on population size and industry level. However, pressure for the achievement of sustainable development goals is yielded by the drivers of industrialization and improper hazardous waste management. In China, the state of hazardous waste generation increased from 9.74 Mt (1Mt = 10⁹kg) in 1998 to 75 Mt in 2018. During 2001-2017, the comprehensive utilization, disposal, and storage ranged from 5-20 Mt, 2-15 Mt, and 3-10 Mt, respectively. Human and environmental impacts can be seen through the changing state of waste generation and handling. As a response, China has led the world to hazardous waste management and recovery lineups through resource efficiency and recycling. Finally, we also try to draw a coherent roadmap for future direction and associated policies.

Keywords:

• China
• disposal
• DPSIR
• hazardous waste
• policy
• regulation

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Mr. Muhammad Saqib Akhtar for his support in analytical tasks and valuable suggestions. We also acknowledged Prof. Huabing Huang of Sun Yat-sen University for his valuable assistance in ArcMap software.

Author contributions

Q.K. collected data, designed, and wrote the manuscript, X.Z. designed the map and figures, refined the narrative and policy analysis; X.Z and J.L. supervised this study. X.Z. and Q.K. had the equal contribution.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The National Key R&D Program of China (2018YFC1900101) has supported this research.