Development of an Ex-Ante Sustainability Assessment Methodology for Municipal Solid Waste Management Innovations

Stephanie Maier,Rafael Horn,Ralf Aschemann,Jing Wang,Robert Holländer

doi:10.3390/su10093208

Abstract

Various municipal solid waste management (MSWM) innovations have emerged in developing countries in face of the challenges posed by increasing waste generation and poor MSWM practice. We present a methodology to assess the potential sustainability impact of MSWM innovations in a holistic manner. The Life Cycle Sustainability Analysis (LCSA) framework and the United Nations (UN) sustainable development goals (SDGs) facilitated the methodology development. The result of applying the methodology to the case of waste bank (WB) in Bandung City shows that WB potentially generates the greatest sustainability impact in the resource recovery phase and the smallest impact in the collection and final disposal phase. All negative impacts could arise in the economic dimension. Surprisingly, WB as a national strategy to achieve 3Rs would not effectively solve Bandung City’s landfill problem. Almost all SDGs would benefit from the WB program under the assumed conditions. This methodology will facilitate the decision-making in MSWM by (1) comparing available innovations to find the optimal solution, (2) identifying the hot spots and taking measures to combat the negative impacts, (3) providing the basis for monitoring the implementation process and the ex-post performance assessment.

Highlights

The municipal solid waste management (MSWM) challenges in developing countries have given rise to various innovations
What sustainability impacts these innovations would cause to the MSWM system at a city scale remains to be systematically investigated
The Life Cycle Sustainability Analysis (LCSA) framework and the sustainable development goals (SDGs) are incorporated in the development of an ex-ante sustainability assessment methodology for innovations in a MSWM system

Summary

Introduction

Municipal solid waste (MSW) generally refers to household waste, while it includes commercial & industrial waste and construction & demolition waste generated from small businesses and institutions [1]. The municipal solid waste management (MSWM) issue has risen as a big challenge for city governors in developing countries or low-income countries [2,3]. Cities in these countries are expecting an increasing magnitude of solid waste generation and challenges along with urbanization, economic development, and population growth [1]. Cities in developing countries often fail to provide sufficient formal waste services to their citizens [1]. The poor SWM practice has led to significant negative impact on public health, environment, and economy [1,4,5]

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Conclusion