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IR08-016_Bel-Mur.pdf (157.08 KB)

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Working paper

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2008

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cc-by-nc-nd, (c) Bel et al., 2008
Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/62331

Intermunicipal cooperation and privatization of solid waste services among small municipalities in Spain

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Abstract

The aim of this paper is to analyze the effects of intermunicipal cooperation and privatization on the delivery costs of urban solid waste services. The results of our empirical analysis, which we conducted among a sample of very small municipalities, indicate that small towns that cooperate incur lower costs for their waste collection service. Cooperation also raises collection frequency and improves the quality of the service in small towns. By contrast, the form of production, whether it is public or private, does not result in systematic differences in costs. Interestingly, the degree of population dispersion has a significant positive relation with service costs. No evidence of scale economies is found because, it would seem, small municipalities exploit them by means of intermunicipal cooperation.

Subject

Privatització, Contractació externa, Administració local, Municipis

Subject (English)

Privatization, Contracting out, Local government, Municipal corporations

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Documents de treball (Institut de Recerca en Economia Aplicada Regional i Pública (IREA))

Citation

BEL I QUERALT, Germà and MUR SANGRÁ, Melania. Intermunicipal cooperation and privatization of solid waste services among small municipalities in Spain. IREA – Working Papers. 2008. Vol.  IR08/16. ISSN 2014-1254. [consulted: 12 of August of 2026]. Available at: https://hdl.handle.net/2445/62331

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