Plastic waste management in the smart cities: Poland and Turkey as a case study

Abstract

Introduction/background: Waste in various forms, such as solid waste, gaseous waste, and liquid waste, increases as a result of population growth, urbanization, and industrialization, and has a global impact. Waste management entails activities such as reuse, recycling, and reducing waste generation, as well as other strategies to combat the effect of waste generation caused by increasing population and industrialization. Monitoring is a critical function of waste management because it is required to address waste management issues such as waste generation, waste collection, waste transportation, waste treatment, and waste disposal. The article presents plastic waste management in the context of smart cities. Purpose: The goal of the article is to present and compare of the production of plastic waste in Poland and Turkey in the context of smart cities. Sustainable and eco-innovation plastic waste management solutions to reduce plastic waste are provided to be implemented in smart cities. In this study, smart cities are explained, how to manage plastic waste by using smart city components, and methods of dealing with plastic waste are explained. Methodology: The article is based on a review of the literature, own observations and own experience. The currently available plastic waste management solutions were analyzed and examples in the implementation of the technology in a smart city are described. Findings: The incorporation of smart city technology into waste management practices provides a smart way to solve waste issues. The main of plastic waste management is to develop methods to transform plastic waste into a circular economy. As estimated by 2030 plastic leakage to ecosystems should be 30% reduced, double the global recovery of plastic (collection and recycling), and shift to sustainable inputs for remaining plastic, including recycled content, sustainably sourced biocontent, advanced products and reducing unnecessary plastic through a business model, innovation, reduction and substitution. Originality: The goal of waste management is to recover as much useful material as possible, including energy. Waste generated in smart cities is a category of municipal waste. Traditional approaches to waste management have failed because they are not reliable or sustainable because they require a lot of input for little or no work output. The incorporation of smart city technology into waste management practices provides a smart way to solve waste issues. The main of plastic waste management is to develop methods to transform plastic waste into a circular economy. Keywords: Plastic wastes, waste management, smart cities, eco-innovation solutions.