Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Landfilling with Sustainable Waste Management Methods for Municipal Solid Wastes

Municipal solid waste (MSW) generation continues to increase exponentially, leading to the need for better disposal methods. Approximately 50% of the MSW is landfilled in the United States (US). Landfilling is known for its negative effects on the environment and human health. The objective of this study was to conduct a life cycle assessment (LCA) of some of the most common waste treatment methods and propose an alternative and environmentally friendly integrated waste management method (IWM). The LCA was conducted using OpenLCA. Replacing landfilling, incineration, and composting with recycling, gasification, and anaerobic digestion (IWM) reduced the global warming potential from 899 kg CO2 eq to -14.6 kg CO2 eq. The same trend was observed for acidification (from 0.21 kg SO2 eq to -1.1 kg SO2 eq), ecotoxicity (from 2363.8 CTUe to 1.22 CTUe), eutrophication (from 0.5 kg N eq to 0.3 kg N eq), smog formation (from 4.4 kg O3 eq to 1.85 kg O3 eq), ozone depletion (from 2.1 x 10-5 kg CFC-11 eq to 0 kg CFC-11 eq), respiratory effects (from 2.8 x 10-3 kg PM2.5 eq to -7.25 x 10-3 kg PM2.5 eq), cancer (from 2 x 10-5 CTUh to 1.2 x 10-7 CTUh), and non-cancer effects (from 6 x 10-5 to 1.4 x 10-5 CTUh). The results show that an integrated waste management approach with recycling, gasification, and anaerobic digestion can dramatically reduce the environmental and health impacts of municipal solid waste disposal. Policy reforms, technical innovation, economic investment, and social engagement are needed to change waste management paradigm.