Estimating flexible cost functions on refuse collection in attica region, greece

The purpose of this study is to investigate the existence of economies of scale and other economic parameters influencing the rate of return of the domestic solid waste collection process. To this end, the case of the Attica region in Greece, which includes equal amounts of urban and rural areas, is considered. The investigating approach is performed via the transcendental logarithmic cost function, a member of the family of flexible functions, which was selected as the most suitable for this particular application. Despite the increased complexity of the problem, the results of estimation of the econometric model lead to useful conclusions. A complementary relationship between capital and labour is observed, while strong substitution relationships for the (capital, labour) and (labour, energy) variable pairs are found. Our analysis also indicates absence of economies of scale in refuse collection services.