Definition of a multi-criteria, web-based approach to managing the illegal dumping of solid waste in Italian villages

Abstract

The aim of this study is to define a multi-criteria, web-based approach that can be used to manage the illegal dumping of solid waste, which is a serious environmental concern both in developing and developed countries. A simplified web-based geographic information system (SI-WEB-GIS) was designed to identify illegal dumpsites, and to allow sharing resources among authorities, technicians and citizens. A self-made multi-criteria technique was designed to establish the intervention priorities, in seven steps: (1) constructing the alternatives matrix; (2) giving a qualitative value or a combination of qualitative values to each individual dumpsite and to all criteria; (3) giving a numeric value to each qualitative value or combination of qualitative values in the alternatives matrix (three methods were adopted); (4) calculating the Average Hazard Index (AHI); (5) ranking the dumpsites of each alternatives matrix, in the order of decreasing AHI; (6) comparing the first 50% of the dumpsites in the three rankings, in order to evaluate which had the most intervention priorities and (7) performing a sensitivity analysis, giving different priorities to the four criteria adopted (relative quantity of waste, soil permeability level, pollution targets and types of solid waste). The application of the multi-criteria, web-based approach to managing the illegal dumping of solid waste allows minimizing the total social cost of pollution, rehabilitating dumpsites and monitoring illegal dumping. Although the system was applied to a village in Southern Italy, with around 14,000 inhabitants, it can easily be customized for use in similar villages in Italy and in other countries.