A COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT OF ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF TWO SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT SCENARIOS

Abstract

This work conducts a practical study in the city of Paraíba do Sul in Brazil, comparing two possible scenarios for Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Management. The novelty of this work is in employing cost and sustainability indicators in the MSW management proposal, using the organic fraction of waste in a local composting process. Two scenarios are proposed; the first one is based on sending all MSW collected in the city to the new private landfill; and the second scenario is a novel model proposed in this work, involving the shipment of organic waste to a composting yard. The study analyzes different scenarios involving ten neighborhoods from the municipal core. The findings indicate a 19% monthly cost difference between the scenarios, with the second simulation being the most expensive. However, this additional cost could be offset by revenue from compost sales. Sustainability indicator scores suggest that the second scenario is the most environmentally favorable, primarily due to its technological simplicity, the low economic cost of the composting method, and the presence of selective collection and organic waste utilization.Such advantages stand out and the economic validation of the model for the context of cities with up to 50,000 inhabitants, in developing countries.