Example environment dissertation topic 5:

Home composting in North Oxfordshire: A quantitative study in garden environmental waste management and recycling.

With its picturesque villages, Georgian houses and above-average levels of wealth, North Oxfordshire also benefits from a vibrancy of community spirit enshrined in organisations such as Low Carbon Oxford North and the Steeple Aston Horticultural Society. As a consequence, it is an area rich in potential data with regard to home composting. Working with twenty local residents, this dissertation charts a yearly cycle of waste management that includes composting, kitchen refuse recycling, mulching and green-bark reuse. Through so doing it hopes to provide a framework for responsible environmental gardening that can be used by householders throughout England so as to not only maximise recycling opportunities but also further improve organic gardening techniques.

Suggested initial topic reading:

• Edgerton, E., McKechnie, J. and Dunleavy, K. (2008). ‘Behavioral determinants of household participation in a home composting scheme’, Environment and Behaviour, Vol. 41(2), pp. 151-169.
• Sharp, V., Georgi, S. and Wilson, D.C. (2010). ‘Delivery and impact of household waste prevention intervention campaigns (at the local level)’, Waste Management and Research, Vol. 28(3), pp. 256-268.
• Smith, S.R. and Jasim, S. (2009). ‘Small-scale home composting of biodegradable household waste: Overview of key results from a 3-year research programme in West London’, Waste Management and Research, Vol. 27(10), pp. 941-950.