Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug - Ugra in Siberia has recently started to play a major role in the Russian economy because key oil and gas extraction sites are located in this region. As a result, the extensions of infrastructure and higher incomes have been leading to an accelerated population growth and consequent increase in the generation of solid household waste. The current methods of waste disposal have now reached their limits, especially in the towns Khanty-Mansiysk and Surgut. The key objectives of this study were to identify the influence of waste composition and transport routes on the life cycle assessment (LCA) results and to assess the current waste treatment option for solid household waste and to compare it with proposed scenarios. Furthermore, recommendations for an optimal use of LCA within a decision-making process for a waste management plan are presented. LCA methodology was used to evaluate different waste management scenarios such as landfilling and incineration. One result was that the options 'incineration with recycling' and 'anaerobic mechanical-biological treatment with recycling' demonstrated lower environmental impact in both Khanty-Mansiysk and Surgut. Another finding was that there were hardly any differences in the ranking of the scenarios for Surgut and Khanty-Mansiysk. However, the special socio-cultural circumstances and location of each town have to be considered seriously in the development of a sustainable waste management plan.

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In many countries, local authorities are typically responsible for the development of a waste management plan and often have to work around difficult conditions, such as poor infrastructure, isolated locations and severe climate conditions as well as inadequate budgets. Analyses of municipal solid waste (MSW) are a crucial prerequisite to the development of sustainable waste management plans. Consequently, the selection of an appropriate tool for waste analysis is significant. To that end, three different research projects were implemented to test the viability of various waste analysis tools. The strengths and weaknesses of each tool are discussed in this paper. The overall objective of this study is to assist decision makers internationally in the planning and development of MSW management, specifically with regard to choosing tools for waste analysis. Thus, recommendations for optimal implementation of waste analysis of MSW by local authorities were developed.