Analysis of risk and benefit perception of Waste-to-Energy incineration plants; A survey of the university population

This thesis investigates the psychological and perceptual factors influencing acceptance of municipal solid waste incineration plants within a university population. While waste-to-energy technologies are increasingly integrated into European waste management strategies, public opposition often emerges due to concerns about health and environmental impacts. Building on the psychometric paradigm of risk perception and technology acceptance literature, the study examines how perceived risks, perceived benefits, and trust in information sources shape support for or opposition to Waste-to-Energy facilities. Data were collected through an online questionnaire administered in Italian and English, yielding 133 valid responses. Based on the results of Principal Component Analysis and reliability testing (Cronbach’s alpha), two indices of perceived risk were constructed. The first index captured localized concerns related to health and environmental impacts, while the second reflected psychometric risk characteristics, including perceived controllability, fatality, and catastrophic potential of waste incineration plants. In a similar manner, perceived benefits were grouped into two indices: one related to environmental and technological advantages, and the other to economic and systemic contributions. Regression analyses indicated that higher levels of perceived risk were associated with lower levels of acceptance. In contrast, perceived benefits, particularly those linked to environmental performance, were positively associated with support. Although risk and benefit perceptions were negatively correlated, the strength of this relationship was moderate, suggesting that respondents did not evaluate the technology in purely polarized terms but instead appeared to consider both potential drawbacks and advantages. Trust did not significantly moderate the relationship between risk perception and acceptance. However, it functioned as an independent predictor, meaning that respondents with higher institutional trust tended to report greater support overall. Willingness to live near a plant was positively associated with acceptance, while perceived environmental and health risks were negatively related to proximity acceptance and support. In addition, familiarity with waste incineration was associated with lower perceived risk and higher levels of support. Gender differences were observed, with females reporting higher perceived risks and lower acceptance, while males expressed greater perceived benefits and support. Overall, the findings indicate that acceptance within this predominantly academic sample reflects a reasoned evaluation process in which perceived risks and anticipated benefits are weighed against each other.