Enablers of sustainable municipal solid waste management system in India

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.

This chapter proposes for the introduction of a recycling system in developing countries to enhance sustainable municipal solid waste (MSW) management. Poor infrastructures, coupled with inadequate resources and lack of funding, work against the optimization of a MSW disposal service. Authorities in charge of waste management need to change not only behaviors, but modernize their processes. Recycling technology is a key part of the solution. A model has been developed which suggest the involvement of stakeholders to achieve meaningful sustainable MSWM. This can be achieved by recognizing the role of the informal sector through community-based organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and the private sector. The open dump approach is leading to severe environmental consequences as groundwater and soil is been contaminated. In this chapter, an integrated municipal solid waste management approach was developed with a model to help achieve sustainable municipal solid waste management. Resource recovery, not waste disposal, must be the ultimate goal with clearly defined end user markets so that the recovery loop is complete. Mandatory sorting of waste at household level would help greatly in making recycling activity successful.

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

Chula model for sustainable municipal solid waste management in university canteens

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.

Designing a framework for municipal solid waste management towards sustainability in emerging economy countries - An application to a case study in Belo Horizonte (Brazil)

PurposeThis paper aims to describe the present waste management scenario in the city of Allahabad listing the gaps in the waste management system.Design/methodology/approachThe research work was divided into three stages. The first stage was the collection of background data regarding municipal solid waste management systems such as waste generation, waste collection, treatment and disposal methods. The second stage involved data organization and data analysis. The third stage provided the conceptual framework that has been developed for MSW management, and finally a sustainable and suitable waste management option was provided for improving the MSW management in Allahabad.FindingsThe existing solid waste management approach in the city is highly unprofessional and lacking in scientific methodologies. There is neither proper collection nor proper treatment and disposal of waste. Most of the waste is dumped in low lying areas leading to pollution of land, air and water due to leachate generation.Practical implicationsThere is need to develop a correct and detailed database of waste generation, collection and treatment system in various wards of Allahabad so that required manpower, equipments and other services can be estimated for designing a proper waste collection, treatment and disposal system. No site for engineered landfill has been identified as per the site selection criteria provided by Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. The suggestions in this paper have been made on the basis of data collected, actual observations and analysis.Originality/valueThe work identifies the gap in the present solid waste management system of Allahabad City.

The monitoring and collection of municipal solid waste (MSW) data have been a daunting task. The development of a digital mapping, data collection, and data reporting system, allows for ease of data management and creation of a standardised system. This study develops a waste mapping and tracking system based on a structured ontological framework for an improved waste management system. The ontology is based on a four-level data framework in a zoned waste management system within a municipal area, regional or national boundaries. The waste flow system is designed to connect all facilities and activities in the zone and flexible to allow inter-zonal access to facilities that are existing outside a zone. Data tagging and collection strategies are developed to provide the vocabulary and standard for data encoding and recording of all knowledge-based information to help in the decision-making rules.

In most developing countries, the disposal and treatment of solid waste in urban areas has proved to be a problem for the social acceptance of local residents and long-term sustainable development. This study proposes a multi-objective optimisation methodology to investigate sustainable network designs for solid waste management system. A case of Pathum Thani province, Thailand, is used to illustrate the application of the methodology. The social impact, defined as the number of people affected by the unpleasant sanitary conditions of nearby solid waste management facilities, is estimated by using GIS tools. The sustainability performances are normalised to a satisfaction scale, allowing decision makers to select network design solutions based on their sustainability target preferences. The results suggest that the facility location can significantly alter the sustainability performances, and it is shown that the locations of waste management facilities can be arranged to simultaneously improve all of the aspects of sustainability.

Developing integrated and sustainable municipal solid waste management systems in low-income contexts : Lessons from Maputo City, Mozambique

Community participation (CP) in municipal solid waste management (MSWM) is a strategy introduced by UN Sustainable Cities Programme (SCP) in the early 1990s to developing countries. It aimed at complementing local governments‟ limited resources and capacities overwhelmed by rapid urbanization to managing solid waste sustainably. Tanzania adopted the strategy in 1992 under a market oriented economy starting with Dar es Salaam and then it was replicated to other urban areas of the country including Morogoro Municipality in 1998. This strategy has been received with different feelings and outcomes in Tanzania. In some situations, community participation through CBOs has failed to manage solid waste in their respective communities. This study identified Kikundi cha Usafi wa Mazingira (KIUM) CBO as a success story of community participation in municipal solid waste management project in Morogoro Municipality by achieving 50% of solid waste collection. The study employed the Institutional Economic Theory (IET) and Solid Waste Service Provision Linkage Triangle Model to the study‟s conceptual framework to analyse CP in municipal solid waste management using organizational, legal, resource, coordination, benefits and effective community participation variables in a market-oriented economy. Participatory Urban Appraisal (PUA) using Focused Group Discussions (FGDs) and researcher‟s in-depth interviews were employed to interview the CBO‟s leaders and community members in Mji Mkuu Ward where KIUM operates. The findings showed that a well organized CBO as KIUM with committed leadership which scored 50% in self-managing MSW service provision has the potentiality of achieving sustainable MSWM; if such poor communities-based groups are adequately given an enabling environment. The local government has not given enough encouragement to CBOs towards achieving sustainable municipal solid waste management.

At present, there are many environmental, economic and social problems associated with poor municipal solid waste (MSW) management in Thailand. The development of sustainable solid waste management systems is a crucial aspect and should be based on an integrated approach. Therefore, an integrated system was designed for Nonthaburi Municipality incorporating recycling, anaerobic digestion, incineration and landfill technologies. In order to assess sustainability, a clear methodology was developed via life cycle thinking and a set of endpoint composite indicators has been proposed considering the most critical ultimate damages/effects of MSW management on the environment, the economy and society. The results showed that the appropriate integration of technologies offers important prospects with regards to socio-economic and environmental aspects, contributing, therefore, to improved sustainability for the overall MSW management system. The methodology and the proposed indicators would be useful in strategic planning, including decision- and policy-making with respect to the development of appropriate sustainable MSW management systems.

Purpose – This paper examined the current status of municipal solid waste management across Nigeria. The core aspects covered are generation, characterization, collection, scavenging, open dumping, disposal and environmental implications of poor solid waste management. The purpose of this paper is to present a comprehensive overview of the current state of municipal solid waste management in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach – This study was executed by a combination of an extensive literature search and field study. Solid waste generation rates for 31 Nigerian cities were obtained from literature. In addition, characteristics of municipal solid waste from 26 Nigerian cities were also obtained from literature. Other aspects such as characterization of solid waste obtained from final dumpsite and heavy metals accumulation in solid waste dumpsites were undertaken first hand. Findings – Solid waste generation rate was found to vary from 0.13 kg/capita/day in Ogbomosho to 0.71 kg/capita/day in Ado-Ekiti. Factors affecting solid waste generation rates were identified. Typically, food waste was found to constitute close to 50 percent of overall municipal solid waste in Nigerian cities. This study shows that the rate of generation of plastics, water proof materials and diapers has assumed an upward trend. Due to the dysfunctional state of many municipal waste management authorities, many cities have been overrun by open dumps. For instance, more than 50 percent of residents of Maiduguri in northern Nigeria and Ughelli in southern Nigeria dispose of their waste in open dumps. Indiscriminate disposal of waste has also resulted in the preponderance of toxic heavy metals in agricultural soils and consequent bioaccumulation in plants as well as groundwater contamination. Research limitations/implications – The main limitation of this research is municipal waste management authorities do not have relevant data. Hence, there was heavy reliance on published materials. The status of waste management in Nigeria is very deplorable and therefore poses serious threats to public and environmental health. There is urgent need for both government and individuals to adopt holistic and sustainable waste management strategies in order to safeguard public/environmental health. Practical implications – Findings from this paper can form a veritable resource for the formulation and implementation of sustainable municipal solid waste management framework and strategies in Nigeria. Originality/value – While most studies on municipal solid waste management in Nigeria are focussed on selected cities of interest, this particular study cuts across most cities of Nigeria in order to present a broader and holistic view of municipal solid waste management in Nigeria. The paper has also unraveled core municipal solid waste management challenges facing Nigerian cities.

Sustainable recycling of municipal solid waste in developing countries

PurposeSmart cities in India are going to be a reality very soon by turning challenges into opportunities for the society. However, due to rapid increase in population burden, fast urbanization and growing demand of advanced services in the smart cities, the quantity of per capita municipal solid waste (MSW) has escalated. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has further challenged the municipal solid waste management (MSWM) system with the increasing amount of infectious wastes coming from households (HHs), quarantine centers, healthcare facilities, vaccination centers, etc. Therefore, the present study attempts to explore and analyze the various dimensions of sustainable MSWM system in the smart cities.Design/methodology/approachThe study identifies 13 factors of sustainable MSWM system from the literature, field surveys and stakeholders' opinions. Thereafter, stakeholders' opinions are collected and analyzed using total interpretive structural modeling (TISM) approach to explore the interrelationships among the factors of sustainable MSWM system. These relationships are further validated through the empirical investigation of the real-life case study of Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC), Odisha, India.FindingsThe TISM approach places all 13 factors into six levels in the hierarchical digraph depending upon the inputs received from the various stakeholders on their interrelationships. Study also validates the proposed TISM model by collecting the data of RMC, Odisha, on the development of MSWM system over the period of 2015–2021.Practical implicationsThe study also highlights various implications for the other developing cities and stakeholders to set up the roadmap for developing the sustainable MSWM system. Study defines “IT platform” and “awareness among citizens” as the base of the sustainable MSWM system in any smart city.Originality/valueThe present study is the first of its kind to explore the interrelationships among the factors of sustainable MSWM system by using TISM approach. Moreover, the proposed TISM framework is further validated through the empirical journey of one of the smart cities in India.