Small fees, big impact on recycling behaviour
Bergen’s underground waste system was recently featured in The Washington Post, highlighting how a modest fee on unsorted waste has boosted recycling rates — and how research by economists at FAIR helped quantify the effect.
“Pay-As-You-Throw” in Action
At the heart of Bergen’s system is a key-fob controlled inlet that tracks unsorted waste and applies a fee after four disposals per month — roughly $1 per additional use. Recycling inlets for paper, plastic, and compost remain free to use. While some residents expressed dissatisfaction with the fee, a research team from FAIR at NHH found that combining the charge with a behavioral nudge — such as an explanatory letter and a sticker of a smiling whale — eliminated the negative sentiment and reinforced the importance of recycling.
Their working paper shows that introducing the fee led to a 15% increase in recycling rates in neighborhoods where it was implemented, compared to control areas. The findings underscore how even modest pricing mechanisms, paired with well-designed communication, can support greener urban policies.