Effective dialogue: Enhanced public engagement as a legitimising tool for municipal waste management decision-making

The complexity of municipal waste management decision-making has increased in recent years, accompanied by growing scrutiny from stakeholders, including local communities. This complexity reflects a socio-technical framing of the risks and social impacts associated with selecting technologies and sites for waste treatment and disposal facilities. Consequently there is growing pressure on local authorities for stakeholders (including communities) to be given an early opportunity to shape local waste policy in order to encourage swift planning, development and acceptance of the technologies needed to meet statutory targets to divert waste from landfill. This paper presents findings from a research project that explored the use of analytical-deliberative processes as a legitimising tool for waste management decision-making. Adopting a mixed methods approach, the study revealed a need to clarify the context for deliberation and the conditions in which public values are integrated into technical analysis of waste management options. The findings suggest that the nature and complexity of waste issues, the local culture and the potential for controversy each requires careful consideration within analytical-deliberative processes to enable learning and build trust among participants in waste decision-making processes.