Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Solid Waste Management in Developing Countries: Towards a Circular Economy

  • Reference work entry
  • First Online:
Handbook of Solid Waste Management

Abstract

The aim of this chapter is to provide an overview of how sustainable solid waste management practices contribute to circular economy. As a paradigm shift, circular economy may contribute to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) specially the Goals 11 and 12. It is well recognized that current global consumption levels and the associated over-reliance on waste disposal and emissions are unsustainable. This chapter has identified how Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) with good practice can lead to circular economy in the context of developing countries with particular focus on South Asian countries. First, this chapter has provided an introduction including the objectives of the chapter. Second, this chapter discussed the potential of solid waste management (e.g., waste to energy) to create circular economy based on literature. Third, the situation of MSW management including generation, composition, collection, disposal, and treatment of MSW in South Asian countries was analyzed. Fourth, developing countries were presented as case studies to learn lessons on how good practice of MSW management using WtE technology can lead towards a circular economy. Fifth, discussions included the potential of circular economy from WtE and issues relating to WtE for South Asian countries. Finally, this was followed by conclusions.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 649.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 1,199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • C. Achillas, C. Vlachokostas, N. Moussiopoulos, G. Banias, G. Kafetzopoulos, A. Karagiannidis, Social acceptance for the development of a waste-to energy plant in an urban area. Resour. Conserv. Recycl. 55, 857–863 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ahmed, S.I., Al Fatta, A., Hossain, M.J., Tanvir, M.S., Potential of Waste to Energy (WtE) technologies for efficient management of municipal solid waste in Bangladesh, in International Conference on Energy & Environment, USA (2018)

    Google Scholar 

  • N. Antoniou, F. Monlau, C. Sambusiti, E. Ficara, A. Barakat, A. Zabaniotou, Contribution to circular economy options of mixed agricultural wastes management: coupling anaerobic digestion with gasification for enhanced energy and material recovery. J. Clean. Prod. 209, 505–514 (2019)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Asian Development Bank, Solid Waste Management in Nepal: Current Status and Policy Recommendations (Asian Development Bank, Manila, 2013)

    Google Scholar 

  • M.K. Awasthi, S. Sarasota, S. Wainaina, K. Rajendran, S. Kumar, W. Quan, A critical review of organic manure biorefinery models toward sustainable circular bioeconomy: Technological challenges, advancements, innovations, and future perspectives. Renew. Sust. Energ. Rev. 111, 115–131 (2019)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • M. Bagheri, R. Esfilar, M.S. Golchi, C.A. Kennedy, Towards a circular economy: A comprehensive study of higher heat values and emission potential of various municipal solid wastes. Waste Manag. 101, 210–221 (2020)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Central pollution control board (CPCB) bulletin, Government of India (2016). Available at http://cpcb.nic.in/openpdffile.php. Accessed 24 Aug 2020

  • M. Cholifihani, Mitigating the adverse impacts of the circular economy: Implementation and role of governments, in Industry 4.0: Empowering ASEAN for the Circular Economy, ed. by V. Anbumozhi, F. Kimura, (ERIA, Jakarta, 2018), pp. 261–283

    Google Scholar 

  • Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), UK statistics on waste (2016). Available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-waste-data. Accessed on 2 Feb 2021

  • EMF, Towards the circular economy: Opportunities for the consumer goods sector (2013). Retrieved from https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/publications

  • EMF, Towards a circular economy: Business rationale for an accelerated transition (2015). Retrieved from https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/publications

  • European Commission, The European Union (EU) environmental implementation review country report – Italy (2017a). Available at https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/021e8d_b5ea51a150b5422fa3e725449561767d.pdf. Accessed on 12 Dec 2020

  • European Commission, The European Union (EU) environmental implementation review country report – Estonia, Brussels (2017b). Available at https://ec.europa.eu/environment/eir/pdf/country-reports-archive/report_ee_en.pdf. Accessed on 5 Dec 2020

  • M. Fernández-Delgado, E. del Amo-Mateos, L.M. Susana, T. García-Cubero, M. Coca, Recovery of organic carbon from municipal mixed waste compost for the production of fertilizers. J. Clean. Prod. 265, 121805 (2020)

    Google Scholar 

  • Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Waste-to-energy options in municipal solid waste management: A guide for decision makers in developing and emerging countries, Eschborn (2017). Available at https://www.giz.de/en/downloads/GIZ%20WasteToEnergy%20Guidelines%202017.pdf. Accessed on 4 Dec 2012

  • S. González-García, M. Rama, A. Cortés, F. García-Guaita, A. Núñez, L. Louro, M. Moreira, G. Feijoo, Embedding environmental, economic and social indicators in the evaluation of the sustainability of the municipalities of Galicia (northwest of Spain). J. Clean. Prod. 234, 27–42 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • X.Y. Gu, J.Z. Liu, J.W.C. Wong, Control of lactic acid production during hydrolysis and acidogenesis of food waste. Bioresour. Technol. 247, 711–715 (2018)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • W.F. Haas, D.W. Krausmann, M. Heinz, How circular is the global economy?: An assessment of material flows, waste production, and recycling in the European Union and the world in 2005. J. Ind. Ecol. 19(5), 765–777 (2015)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Italian National Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (ISPRA), Rapporto Rifiuti Urbani – Edizione (2016). Available at https://www.isprambiente.gov.it. Acessed on 3 Dec 2020

  • T. Jamas, R. Nepal, Issues and options in waste management: a social cost benefit analysis of waste-to-energy in the UK. Resour. Conserv. Recycl. 54, 1341–1352 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2010.05.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Z. Kabir, I. Khan, Environmental impact assessment of waste to energy projects in developing countries: A guideline in the context of Bangladesh. Sustain. Energy Technol. Assess. 37, 1–13 (2020)

    Google Scholar 

  • E.O. Kanmaz, Humic acid formation during subcritical water extraction of food by-products using accelerated solvent extractor. Food Bioprod. Process. 115, 118–125 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • I. Khan, Z. Kabir, Sustainability assessment of waste-to-energy (Electricity) generation technologies and its prospect in the developing world: A case of Bangladesh. Renew. Energy 150, 320–333 (2020)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • I.A. Khatib, Municipal solid waste management in developing countries: Future challenges and possible opportunities, in Integrated Waste Management-Volume II, ed. by S. Kumar, IntechOpen, London, UK, Chapter-3, pp. 35–48, 2018

    Google Scholar 

  • A. Kumar, S.R. Samadder, An empirical model for prediction of household solid waste generation rate – A case study of Dhanbad, India. Waste Manag. 68, 3–15 (2017a)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • A. Kumar, S.R. Samadder, A review on technological options of waste to energy for effective management of municipal solid waste. Waste Manag. 69, 407–422 (2017b)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • D.J. Lane, J. Jokiniemi, M. Heimonen, S. Peräniemi, N.M. Kinnunen, H. Koponen, et al., Thermal treatment of municipal solid waste incineration fly ash: Impact of gas atmosphere on the volatility of major, minor, and trace elements. Waste Manag. 114, 1–16 (2020)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • D. Lindberg, C. Molin, M. Hupa, Thermal treatment of solid residues from WtE units: A review. Waste Manag. 37, 82–94 (2015)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • A.B..P. Luis, S.B. Barbara, M.D. Rafael, J. Daniel, A.G.B. Rosane, Organic solid waste management in a circular economy perspective – A systematic review and SWOT analysis. J. Clean. Prod. 239, 118086 (2019)

    Google Scholar 

  • J.A. Mathews, H. Tan, Circular economy: lessons from China. Nature 531, 440–442 (2016)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MHUA), Swachh Bharat Mission, India (2016). Available at http://mohua.gov.in/cms/swachh-bharat-mission.php, viewed on 4/11/2020

  • N245 GS, National plan for the prevention, the gazzetta Ufficiale of the Italian Republic, Rome (2013)

    Google Scholar 

  • NITI Aayog, Strategy on resource efficiency. https://e M. Bagheri, Z. Guevara, M. Alikarami, C.A. Kennedy, G. Doluweera, 2018a. Green growth planning: A multi-factor energy input-output analysis of the Canadian economy. Energy Econ. 74, 708–720 (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  • Office for National Statistics, Overview of the United Kingdom population: 2017 (2017a). Available at https://www.ons.gov.uk. Accessed on 6 Oct 2020

  • Office for National Statistics, Energy consumption from renewable and waste sources in the United Kingdom, 1990 to 2015 (2017b). Available at https://www.ons.gov.uk. Accessed on 4 Oct 2020

  • J.D. Nixon, P.K. Dey, S.K. Ghosh, Energy recovery from waste in India: An evidence-based analysis. Sustain. Energy Technol. Assess. 21, 23–32 (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  • S. Nuhaa, Insight into the recovery of nutrients from organic solid waste through biochemical conversion processes for fertilizer production: A review. J. Clean. Prod. 241, 118413 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • OECD, Global Material Resources Outlook to 2060: Economic Drivers and Environmental Consequences (OECD Publishing, Paris, 2018). https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264307452-en

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • M. Ottoni, P. Dias, L.H. Xavier, A circular approach to the e-waste valorization through urban mining in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. J. Clean. Prod. 261, 120990 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.120990

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • M. Pernice, Programma Nazionale prevenzione Rifiuti. From aerobic to anaerobic digestion and additional benefits, Vol. 665 (2013). http://european-biogas.eu/wpcontent/uploads/2016/03/Milan.pdf. Accessed 20 Apr 2020

  • N. Phanthumchinda, S. Thitiprasert, S. Tanasupawat, S. Assabumrungrat, N. Thongchul, Process and cost modeling of lactic acid recovery from fermentation broths by membrane-based process. Process Biochem. 68, 205–213 (2018)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • S. Phuntsho, I. Dulal, D. Yangden, U.M. Tenzin, S. Herat, H. Shon, et al., Studying municipal solid waste generation and composition in the urban areas of Bhutan. Waste Manage. Res.: J. Sustain. Circ. Econ. 28(6), 545–551 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • N. Pour, P.A. Webley, P.J. Cook, Potential for using municipal solid waste as a resource for bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS). Int. J. Greenhouse Gas Control 68, 1–15 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijggc.2017.11.007

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • F. Preston, J. Lehne, L. Wellesley, An inclusive circular economy priorities for developing countries, Research Paper, Energy, Environment and Resources Department, USA (2019)

    Google Scholar 

  • N. Pucino, Wastes in paradise: Volumes, composition and management of municipal solid wastes in Maldives (2016). https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.1.5116.8880

  • N. Scarlat, V. Motola, J.F. Dallemand, F. Monforti-Ferrario, L. Mofor, Evaluation of energy potential of municipal solid waste from African urban areas. Renew. Sust. Energ. Rev. 50, 1269–1286 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • P. Schroeder, K. Anggraeni, W. Weber, The relevance of circular economy: Practices to the sustainable development goals. J. Ind. Ecol. 23, 77–95 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.12732

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • K.D. Sharma, S. Jain, Overview of municipal solid waste generation, composition, and management in India. J. Environ. Eng. 145(3), 1–18 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • S. Sharma, S. Basu, N.P. Shetti, T.M. Aminabhavi, Waste-to-energy nexus for circular economy and environmental protection: Recent trends in hydrogen energy. Sci. Total Environ. 713, 136633 (2020a)

    Google Scholar 

  • H.B. Sharma, S. Panigrahi, A.K. Sarmah, B.K. Dubey, Downstream augmentation of hydrothermal carbonization with anaerobic digestion for integrated biogas and hydro char production from the organic fraction of municipal solid waste: A circular economy concept. Sci. Total Environ. 706, 135907 (2020b). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135907

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • P. Thiriet, T. Bioteau, A. Tremier, Optimization method to construct microanaerobic digesters networks for decentralized biowaste treatment in urban and periurban areas. J. Clean. Prod. 243, 118478 (2020)

    Google Scholar 

  • A. Tisserant, S. Pauliuk, S. Merciai, J. Schmidt, J. Fry, R. Wood, A. Tukker, Solid waste and the circular economy: A global analysis of waste treatment and waste footprints. J. Ind. Ecol. 21, 628–640 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1111/jiec.12562

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • UNDP, A Circular Economy Solid Waste Management Approach for Urban Areas in Kenya (Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, Nairobi, 2016)

    Google Scholar 

  • UNDP, Conducting a feasibility study on waste-to-energy conversion in six municipalities in Bangladesh, Final report, Government of Bangladesh (2017)

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations Centre for Regional Development, Solid waste management in South Asia, South Asian Seas Program (SASP) (2017). Available at https://www.uncrd.or.jp/content/documents/06_Priyankari-SACEP.pdf

  • M.D. Vaverková, D. Dana Adamcová, J. Winkler, E. Koda, L. Petrželová, A. Maxianová, Alternative method of composting on a reclaimed municipal waste landfill in accordance with the circular economy: Benefits and risks. Sci. Total Environ. 723, 137971 (2020)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • World Bank, What a waste. A global review of solid waste management. The Urban Development Series Knowledge papers. Washington, DC (2012)

    Google Scholar 

  • World Bank, What a waste. A global snapshot of solid waste management to 2050. The Urban Development Series Knowledge papers. Washington, DC (2018)

    Google Scholar 

  • T. Zamparutti, A. Mcneill, H. Moora, M. Joe, E. Piirsalu, Circular economy with focus on waste, renewable energy and sustainable bioenergy in Estonia. Policy Dep. A Econ. Sci. Policy Qual. Life Policies Eur. (2017). https://doi.org/10.2861/066918

  • A. Zhang, V.G. Venkatesh, Y. Yang Liu, M. Wan, T. Qu, D. Huisingh, Barriers to smart waste management for a circular economy in China. J. Clean. Prod. 240, 118190 (2019)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • M. Zhou, B. Yan, J.W.C. Wong, Y. Zhang, Enhanced volatile fatty acids production from anaerobic fermentation of food waste: a mini-review focusing on acidogenic metabolic pathways. Bioresour. Technol. 248, 68–78 (2018)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Newcastle, Ourimbah, Australia

    Zobaidul Kabir

  2. Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS), Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh

    Mahfuz Kabir

Authors
  1. Zobaidul Kabir
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mahfuz Kabir
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zobaidul Kabir .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Research and Development Center, Teerthanker Mahaveer University, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Chinnappan Baskar

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Center for Nanofibers and Nanotechnology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    Seeram Ramakrishna

  3. Chemistry and Bioprospecting Division, Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India

    Shikha Baskar

  4. Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, New Delhi, Delhi, India

    Rashmi Sharma

  5. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Center for Nanofibers and Nanotechnology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    Amutha Chinnappan

  6. Department of Basic Science, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel University of Agriculture and Technology, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Rashmi Sehrawat

Section Editor information

  1. Research and Development Center, Teerthanker Mahaveer University, Moradabad, India

    Chinnappan Baskar

Annexure-A

Annexure-A

(Table 11)

Table 11 Goals and targets relevant to sustainable Municipal Solid Waste management
Full size table

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Kabir, Z., Kabir, M. (2022). Solid Waste Management in Developing Countries: Towards a Circular Economy. In: Baskar, C., Ramakrishna, S., Baskar, S., Sharma, R., Chinnappan, A., Sehrawat, R. (eds) Handbook of Solid Waste Management. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-4230-2_1

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation