Sequential methodology for the selection of municipal waste treatment alternatives applied to a case study in Chile

Most municipalities in developing countries lack technical and economic resources to improve their municipal solid waste management (MSWM) system. Therefore, tools are needed that enable the most appropriate solutions to be identified to put waste to better use. This study presents an easy-to-apply...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Rondón Toro, Estefani Kristina, López Martínez, Ana|||0000-0002-9955-6441, Lobo García de Cortázar, Amaya|||0000-0003-3441-1476
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2023
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Cantabria (UC)
Repositorio:UCrea Repositorio Abierto de la Universidad de Cantabria
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:repositorio.unican.es:10902/29381
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10902/29381
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Waste management
Decision making
Waste-to-energy
Developing countries
Resource efficiency
Circular economy
Descripción
Sumario:Most municipalities in developing countries lack technical and economic resources to improve their municipal solid waste management (MSWM) system. Therefore, tools are needed that enable the most appropriate solutions to be identified to put waste to better use. This study presents an easy-to-apply sequential methodology for the analysis ofMSWMalternatives. The method consists of two stages: (1) screening available technologies based on a small set of key variables; (2) ordering the selected alternatives by a combination of multicriteria methods that integrate local priorities. For this second stage, a basic series of technical, environmental, economic and social indicators is proposed. The methodology is applied to a case study where current management is limited to mixed municipal solid waste (MSW) disposal in a landfill without gas recovery. Seven options for implementing energy recovery in landfill, using mechanical plants to recover part of recyclable material, treating the organic fraction, and employing refuse-derived fuel and/or waste to energy incineration, were evaluated together with the current situation and considering four scenarios. The results identify various alternatives that allow the sustainability of MSWM in the case study to improve. Notwithstanding, today, it is necessary to introduce economic instruments that discourage final disposal to make municipal waste recovery viable.