A framework for sustainable waste management: challenges and opportunities

Life Cycle Inventory Tools: Supporting the Development of Sustainable Solid Waste Management Systems

The present study was developed to comprehensively analyze experts' views and content of documents focusing on goals and criteria of sustainable waste management system in Tehran, Iran. To this end, the suitable goals for sustainable waste management system in Tehran city were adopted from domestic, national and international documents. For this purpose, 27 national and international documents and 2 domestic documents related to waste management were selected and analyzed by using content analysis according to Gall, 1994. Further, in order to formulate goals in case of bottlenecks and challenges of waste management in Tehran, the focus group technique was used based on Stewart and Shamdasani, 2014. At this stage, 24 key experts in the field of waste management were interviewed in the form of 4 focus groups. Data collection were performed via audio recording and word-for-word implementation of conversations, taking notes and writing field notes. The data collection continued until reaching theoretical saturation. Next, content analysis and coding methods were used to analyze the data. Finally, the goals of waste management were divided into five general categories including: institutional (with emphasis on the integration and inclusion of the key elements of the urban waste management system), technical and infrastructural (with emphasis on the optimization of existing processes in the use of urban waste management technologies), environmental (with emphasis on minimizing the adverse health and environmental effects of the urban waste management system, economic (with emphasis on the economic and financial sustainability of the urban waste management system), and cultural-social (with emphasis on attracting the maximum participation of citizens and service recipients). The results clearly showed that sustainable waste management measures in Tehran should follow these five components in order to reduce the problems caused by unrealistic waste management and make sustainable use of basic, natural, financial and human resources.

Municipal solid waste (MSW) management represents a major expenditure for third world countries, and could be very challenging as it results in environmental impacts including pollution of water resources. The major expenditure of the municipal solid waste management is attributed to overlooking revenues generated from waste. Due to the uncertainties of data, the value of the recyclables is overlooked. Therefore, a key in the development of an effective and sustainable waste management system is having reliable information and a clear characterisation of the municipal waste generated from the community being studied. Hence, this paper presents a waste audit to characterise household waste and more importantly estimate revenues generated from recyclables. The focus was on household waste generated from high income districts. The study found that there was a surplus resulting from the difference between the revenue of recyclables and the cost of its management. This surplus could be used to fund the deficit in waste management system in other lower income districts.

Municipal solid waste (MSW) management represents a major expenditure for third world countries, and could be very challenging as it results in environmental impacts including pollution of water resources. The major expenditure of the municipal solid waste management is attributed to overlooking revenues generated from waste. Due to the uncertainties of data, the value of the recyclables is overlooked. Therefore, a key in the development of an effective and sustainable waste management system is having reliable information and a clear characterisation of the municipal waste generated from the community being studied. Hence, this paper presents a waste audit to characterise household waste and more importantly estimate revenues generated from recyclables. The focus was on household waste generated from high income districts. The study found that there was a surplus resulting from the difference between the revenue of recyclables and the cost of its management. This surplus could be used to fund the deficit in waste management system in other lower income districts.

South Africa has a variety of regulations on the provision of solid waste management services in municipalities because of the apartheid legacy. Nonetheless, discrepancies in waste management services persist despite new laws, legislative reforms and strategies. Those who live in marginalized and impoverished communities are the most susceptible and severely affected by improper waste management. This demonstrates a lack of integrated and sustainable waste management systems. This study aims to recommend a sustainable solid waste management system in Engcobo Local Municipality. Data was gathered through focus group discussions, documents, and semi structured interviews. Findings revealed that there has been improvements in the sustainable management of solid waste. The municipality is experimenting with novel approaches to deal with the problem of solid waste, particularly in remote locations where people’s trash is difficult to pick up and collect. Through the focus group discussions, it was shown that some participants still need more information on waste management, there is a need for thorough educational initiatives on sanitation management, not particularly wastewater and sanitation.

From public to private solid waste management: Stakeholders’ perspectives on private-public solid waste management in Lobatse, Botswana

Effective waste management practices are not all about legislative solutions, but a combination of the environmental, social, technical, technically skilled human resources, financial and technological resources, resource recycling, environmental pollution awareness programmes and public participation. As a result of insufficient resources, municipal solid waste (MSW) in transition and developing countries like Botswana remains a challenge, and it is often not yet given highest priority. In Botswana, the environment, public health and other socio-economic aspects are threatened by waste management practices due to inadequate implementation and enforcement mechanisms of waste management policy. This mini-review paper describes the panorama of waste management practices in Botswana and provides information to competent authorities responsible for waste management and to researchers to develop and implement an effective waste management system. Waste management practices in Botswana are affected by: lack of effective implementation of national waste policy, fragmented tasks and overlapping mandates among relevant institutions; lack of clear guidelines on the responsibilities of the generators and public authorities and on the associated economic incentives; and lack of consistent and comprehensive solid waste management policies; lack of intent by decision-makers to prepare national waste management plans and systems, and design and implement an integrated sustainable municipal solid waste management system. Due to these challenges, there are concerns over the growing trend of the illegal dumping of waste, creating mini dumping sites all over the country, and such actions jeopardize the efforts of lobbying investors and tourism business. Recommendations for concerted efforts are made to support decision makers to re-organize a sustainable waste management system, and this paper provides a reference to other emerging economies in the region and the world.

Towards integrated, and sustainable municipal solid waste management system in Shashemane city administration, Ethiopia

The rapid growth of industry, urban areas, and populations has substantially increased waste production worldwide. The inadequacy of robust waste management systems and limited resources poses significant challenges for many emerging economies, including Bangladesh, resulting in environmental contamination. Despite numerous academic studies on sustainable waste management, there is a noticeable gap in the literature concerning identifying, evaluating, and modeling critical risks associated with adopting sustainable municipal waste management systems, particularly in emerging economies like Bangladesh. This study, therefore, aims to fill this gap by identifying, categorizing, and assessing the crucial risks in implementing sustainable municipal waste management systems. Through an extensive review of existing literature and validation with expert feedback, this study employs a fuzzy synthetic evaluation method-based framework to prioritize the identified risks. The study calculates the probability of occurrence and degree of impact values to provide decision-makers with insights into the severity of different risk categories, aiding in case-by-case attention. Scores assigned on a 1 to 5 scale range from 2.59 to 4.14 for the various risk categories. Notably, “Industrial challenges related” and “Community and infrastructure requirements related” emerge as the most significant risk categories among those analyzed. This study contributes to the existing literature by employing fuzzy synthetic evaluation, a methodology rarely used to determine critical risks in municipal waste management. Furthermore, it is poised to offer valuable insights to industrialists and waste management authorities, empowering them to develop responsive strategies and contribute to the sustainable development of cities and urban communities.

A multi-objective location inventory routing problem with pricing decisions in a sustainable waste management system

Issues Solid waste management is one of the biggest concerns in Bangladesh, particularly in Dhaka city at present. This paper aims to find the gaps and challenges in solid waste management policies and implementations and thus, gives an insight towards sustainable solid waste management system in the country. Description of the Problem Improper solid waste management is adversely impacting environmental protection, public health and the control of carbon emissions in Bangladesh. As a result solid waste has become a major area of public policy with growing concern. Lessons Bangladesh has been experiencing changes in solid waste management since 1983 with the introduction of Dhaka City Corporation Ordinance and later the promulgation of National 3R Policy in 2010. With few exceptions, the overall waste management system cannot be termed as an efficient sequential process of waste minimization, recycling, and disposal based on global standards. Many initiatives are being implemented as part of independent projects by the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and not always supported by policies. Though the establishment of several secondary transfer stations (STSs) has improved the environmental conditions and cleanliness of the cities, the waste segregation and recycling practices in the pathways from households to landfill do not adhere to the 3R Policy. Both the recyclable and non-recyclable waste are collected and dumped all together at different levels of waste management, i.e. collection from households, dumping at STSs, and later in the landfill without any formal procedures of sorting and recycling. Lack of coordination between implementing agencies is another problem. Conclusions Absence of sustainable solid waste management policy and proper execution agency are the main obstacles towards a proper waste management system. This problem is huge and should be addressed immediately to protect the environment and ensure better health of the city population. Key messages Even though the formation of STSs is one of the significant changes in the system nowadays, it is not evaluated or monitored under any specific policy or ordinance. In order to implement the existing policies, adequate funding and monitoring bodies should be introduced to the waste management sector.

A novel parallel heuristic method to design a sustainable medical waste management system

The problems of waste management have become increasingly complex in recent decades. The increasing amount of generated waste, adopted legislation in the field of waste management, administrative issues, economic impacts and social awareness are important drivers in achieving a sustainable waste management system. However, in practice, there are many other drivers that are often mutually in conflict. The purpose of this research is to define the precise driver and their corresponding sub-drivers, which are relevant for developing a waste management system and, on the basis of their importance, to determine which has the predominant influence on the slow development of a waste management system at the national and regional level, within the Republic of Serbia and similar countries of southeast Europe. This research presents two levels of decision making: the first is a pair-wise comparison of the drivers in relation to the goal and the second is a pair-wise comparison of the sub-drivers in relation to the driver and in relation to the goal. Results of performed analyses on the waste management drivers were integrated via the decision-making process supported by an analytic hierarchy process (AHP). The final results of this research shows that the Institutional-Administrative driver is the most important for developing a sustainable waste management system.

Healthcare waste in Bangladesh: Current status, the impact of Covid-19 and sustainable management with life cycle and circular economy framework

The appalling state of Liberia’s municipal solid waste management system (MSWM) is the motivation for this review and analysis. Solid waste management protocols and system dynamic modeling support policy development as it uses waste prevention to explain the complex waste management systems and suggests methods for effective management. However, creating an effective waste system goes beyond the formulation of policies and legislation; it involves financial and technological proficiency, skilled human capacity, technical, social, resource recycling, educational awareness programs, and active public participation. Because of urbanization, Liberia’s municipal solid waste (MSW) problems have become heightened, thereby impacting the economic, social, and political fabric of society by overburdening infrastructure and social facilities. The impact of urbanization must be addressed because urbanization, amongst several factors, including unsustainable management of MSW, degrades the environment and presents risks to public health. The purpose of this review was to highlight the current waste management activities in Liberia and provide information to the readers about the challenges facing the waste management sector and the challenges impeding the development of a sustainable waste management system. In Liberia, waste management activities are getting worse daily due to shortage of a comprehensive waste management framework, the absence of guidelines regarding the responsibilities of waste generators, and the decision-makers' lack of intent to design and implement a sustainable and integrated management system. Recommendations for collaborative efforts are made by focusing on delivering a waste strategy which concentrates on waste minimization, recycling, resource recovery, and promoting sustainable waste management practices for communities, small businesses, corporations, and government institutions in Liberia and other developing countries.