The use of Google community mobility reports to model residential waste generation behaviors during and after the COVID-19 lockdown

•Google's community mobility reports (GCMR) document percent changes in mobility.•We develop an analytical approach to quantify waste generation behaviors using GCMR.•Percent change and relative ranking enable potential cross-jurisdictional studies.•Public health measures improved consistency of waste generation behaviors.•The proposed method supports data-driven waste policy development.