Modelling of Solid Waste Management Systems of Dhaka City in Bangladesh

Abstract

In the previous chapters of this part, case studies on system dynamics modelling and simulation of some practical problems have been presented. This chapter presents a case study of environmental management of solid waste management system of Dhaka City, Bangladesh. The model of this case study is organised as (1) introduction, (2) dynamic hypothesis, (3) causal loop diagram, (4) stock–flow diagram, (5) model validation, (6) simulation and policy analysis and (7) conclusion to illustrate the system dynamics applications in environmental management based on systems thinking. Population, uncleared waste, untreated waste, composite index and public concern are projected to increase with time for Dhaka City. Simulated composts, CO2 total, CH4 and BOD from energy, leachate production and BOD from leachate over a period of 30 years are also presented. Simulated results also show that increasing the budget for collection capacity alone does not improve environmental quality; rather an increased budget is required for both collection and treatment of solid wastes of Dhaka City. This model can be used as a tool to assess and design policy options of solid waste management.