Alternative strategies towards a sustainable municipal solid waste management system: A case study in Cairo

Abstract

Major cities in transitional and developing countries are facing the ever-growing challenge of managing solid waste in a sustainable manner. While a variety of treatments exist for solid waste, cities are in need of a sustainable integrated municipal solid waste management (MSWM) system. Such a system is meant to assist them in selecting and investing in an appropriate combination of treatments for the waste they generate, depending on the composition and quantity of this waste. This study presents a systems analysis of the MSWM in Cairo. A constrained non-linear mathematical model is developed to represent an underlying model of a MSWM system, with six waste material flows (cardboard and paper, plastics, metals, glass, organic material, and others). The developed model depicts combinations of five treatment alternatives (composting, anaerobic digestion, mechanical biological treatment, incineration, and landfilling). The treatment methods and their capacity are determined by the model, indicating possible optimal design solutions and recommendations. Starting with an evaluation of the status quo of the MSWM system in Cairo, the paper proposes a staged strategy, involving investigating improvements to the current mixed-waste management system, then exploring the possibility of introducing at-source waste sorting. The environmental and economic implications of different scenarios are analyzed and compared. A material flow analysis, including input data uncertainties, is also conducted by applying substance flow analysis. This analysis shows the difference between the status quo and the proposed improved solutions for diverting waste from landfills and, thus, decreasing carbon dioxide emissions.

Integrated Waste Management System as a Sustainable Option for Managing Plastic Waste in Ghana: The Case of Madina-La Nkantanan Municipality

“…The efficiency of integrated waste management systems has variously been evaluated using different methodologies. Investigations have suggested that the concept is good and hence its application in the developed world [19]. It is estimated that when utilized, between 75 and 90% of municipal waste in the United States of America could be eliminated.…”

Predictive Analysis of Municipal Solid Waste Generation Using an Optimized Neural Network Model

“…Policymakers, local and national governments, construction industry practitioners, and academics dealing with the challenges of solid wastes in the MENA area were likely to benefit from the findings of this study. ElSaid and Aghezzaf [33] performed a system analysis of MSW management in Cairo, Egypt. To describe an underlying model of the MSW management system, a restricted non-linear mathematical model was developed for six waste material flows (glass, cardboard and paper, metals, plastics, organic material, and others).…”

Latin american production on solid waste management in scopus, 2010 - 2020

“…Scientific literature reports research on the topic, especially initiatives reporting how municipal solid waste should be managed [5], frequent problems related to recycling and recovery [6], sustainability of smart waste management plans [7], the direction of research on waste recycling modeling [8], technologies for solid waste management [9]. especially those applied in developing countries [10] and the odd case study with some encouraging results such as the one reported in Egypt [11]. It is also important a general and systematic description of the scientific literature related to solid waste; in this regard, the literature reports studies such as the one conducted by C. Rodrigues-Vaz, D. Oliveira-Inomata, and J. Cesar-Stiirmer who after doing bibliometric research in Higher Education institutions, resorted to databases such as Web of Science, Scopus and Science direct, finding that out of a total of 118 articles only 14 were related to the topic [12].…”