Waste to energy in Kathmandu Nepal—A way toward achieving sustainable development goals

Abstract

AbstractThe Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) explicitly focus on responsible use of resources, production, and consumption, which comprises sensible waste management includes SDG 3, 7, 11, and 12. Yet, gaps between policies and current waste management practices are prevailing globally as well as nationally. This article discusses waste management (WM) in Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) with a focus on cleaner technology. Waste management has always been an issue in KMC with almost all wastes being dumped directly to a landfill site. The article aims to points out challenge with current waste management based on literature‐ and document reviews. Further, it introduces and analyses technologies to convert waste into energy and evaluates the applicability of the Asian Develop Bank recommendations for waste management in KMC and suggests strategies toward aligning KMC waste management with Nepal's SDG agenda. Findings indicate that Kathmandu has huge potential for implementing waste to energy technologies, and anaerobic digestion seems one of the most promising technologies. Yet, the city lacks a proper waste treatment infrastructure and would benefit from a systematic alignment of technology, policy, and environmental possibilities and challenges in both analysis, planning, and design.