While individual waste bin identification with RFID technology and charging by actual weight have become quite common in Europe, it is still less of a method used in other parts of the world including the U.S.

What are the reasons for that and is it about to change?

The popularity of RFID solutions in Europe are caused by:

• Limited space of landfills or closing of those
• High fees for waste disposal
• Ability to calculate waste charges per user for waste they generated (pay-as-you-throw)
• Significant savings in non-disposable waste
• Savings in waste charges overall

Pay-as-you-throw methods in form of RFID solutions are most common in Europe, especially in larger cities where apartment buildings and homes are close together. Bins in that environment are difficult to identify individually and to assign them to a specific address. Renowned cities like Paris, Barcelona, Venice and Rome, to just name a few, have therefore implemented RFID Waste Management Solutions within their cities.

How does the Waste Industry in the US look like?

Waste charges for consumers and landfill fees are traditionally lower in the U.S. than in Europe. In addition, landfills are, besides some exemptions, not of shortage in general. Let’s have a closer look at the waste data in the U.S (Source: EPA):

The take-away is that waste has generally decreased over the last decades considering the increase in population. Recycling rates are significantly higher than 20 or 30 years ago and disposal to landfills are going down. This tendency seems to be similar to the waste industry developments in Europe with specific local discrepancies. A good example in that direction might be also the Case Study done by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) about tracking and tracing hazardous material.

What do you think? Does this implicate that RFID is getting universal and also becomes more popular in the U.S.? What other countries you know are getting on board with RFID Waste Management Solutions?