3. Integrated approach for sustainable solid waste management
SWM can be thought of as a large materials handling system
that is distributed over an entire city for collection of solid waste
and subsequent transport to the outskirts for processing and disposal.
Moreover, the system provides services to the public, employs
a sizable number of people and requires significant
resources in various forms. Over the years, it has been realized that
it is necessary to design an integrated system as a whole rather
than selecting individual component subsystems that may not
work well together. The concept of integrated solid waste management
systems have gained acceptance. Under this paradigm, all the
component systems are selected simultaneously to allow for rational
planning and effective execution. The resulting system configuration
ensures mutual compatibility of the components,
thereby improving overall performance. Integrated solid waste
management has also been defined as the selection and application
of suitable techniques, technologies and management approaches
to achieve specific objectives and goals.
However, the author is of the opinion that MSW management is
not just a technological system facilitating the handling and disposal
of MSW. MSW management deals with many other factors
such as socio-economic conditions, operating environment and actions
of the municipal government. In the previous section, a number
of issues were discussed with respect to sustainable SWM.
Those types of issues must be considered in the design of every element
of the system. To achieve this, it is necessary to streamline
functionality by integrating many elements that govern performance