In this paper we applied two instruments:Waste Prognostic Tool and Minitab software in order to investigate and predict solid waste generation in Iasi, Romania. The following conclusions can be
drawn:
- the prediction with Waste Prognosis Tool showed a slight decrease in the amount of biodegradable waste generated for 2012-2030 period of time, but this will continue to be the
highest percentage fraction of the total municipal waste generated, followed by paper and cardboard, and plastics;
- Minitab is more adequate for prediction, more complex, and also showing the data and plots in a much better view and correlation compared with Waste Prognostic Tool, which is a software
special created for waste forecasting with variables already predetermined;
- the regression analysis can be successfully applied to determine the changes of response variable when a predictor variable changes;
- the variables population aged 15 to 59 years and total municipal solid waste are significant factors for the analysis and strongly influences thewaste generation, while number of population and urban life expectancy are less significant;
- time series analysis is a technique which can be successfully applied for waste prognostic and in our case the S-Curve trend model is the most suitable for municipal solid waste prediction
for total waste and for each waste fraction evaluated.
Since in this study we have conducted the RA considering social variables, in the following studies we will also consider economic indicators as variables which will replace the urban life expectancy variable that proved to have less influence on waste generation with gross domestic product per capita or other economic indicator. Also, models like ANN or ARIMA will be applied for municipal solid waste prediction in the next studies, in order to make a comparison of these tools and recommend the best one for decision makers.