Paper waste – Recycling,incineration or landfilling? A review of existing life cycle assessments

A review of existing life cycle assessments (LCAs) on paper and cardboard waste has been undertaken. The objectives of the review were threefold. Firstly, to see whether a consistent message comes out of published LCA literature on optimum disposal or recycling solutions for this waste type. Such message has implications for current policy formulation on material recycling and disposal in the EU. Secondly, to identify key methodological issues of paper waste management LCAs, and enlighten the influence of such issues on the conclusions of the LCA studies. Thirdly, in light of the analysis made, to discuss whether it is at all valid to use the LCA methodology in its current development state to guide policy decisions on paper waste. A total of nine LCA studies containing altogether 73 scenarios were selected from a thorough, international literature search. The selected studies are LCAs including comparisons of different management options for waste paper. Despite claims of inconsistency, the LCAs reviewed illustrate the environmental benefits in recycling over incineration or landfill options, for paper and cardboard waste. This broad consensus was found despite differences in geographic location and definitions of the paper recycling/disposal systems studied. A systematic exploration of the LCA studies showed, however, important methodological pitfalls and sources of error, mainly concerning differences in the definition of the system boundaries. Fifteen key assumptions were identified that cover the three paper cycle system areas: raw materials and forestry, paper production, and disposal/recovery. It was found that the outcome of the individual LCA studies largely depended on the choices made in some of these assumptions, most specifically the ones concerning energy use and generation, and forestry.     

Life-cycle-assessment of the historical development of air pollution control and energy recovery in waste incineration

Incineration of municipal solid waste is a debated waste management technology. In some countries it is the main waste management option whereas in other countries it has been disregarded. The main discussion point on waste incineration is the release of air emissions from the combustion of the waste, but also the energy recovery efficiency has a large importance.The historical development of air pollution control in waste incineration was studied through life-cycle-assessment modelling of eight different air pollution control technologies. The results showed a drastic reduction in the release of air emissions and consequently a significant reduction in the potential environmental impacts of waste incineration. Improvements of a factor 0.85–174 were obtained in the different impact potentials as technology developed from no emission control at all, to the best available emission control technologies of today (2010).The importance of efficient energy recovery was studied through seven different combinations of heat and electricity recovery, which were modelled to substitute energy produced from either coal or natural gas. The best air pollution control technology was used at the incinerator. It was found that when substituting coal based energy production total net savings were obtained in both the standard and toxic impact categories. However, if the substituted energy production was based on natural gas, only the most efficient recovery options yielded net savings with respect to the standard impacts. With regards to the toxic impact categories, emissions from the waste incineration process were always larger than those from the avoided energy production based on natural gas. The results shows that the potential environmental impacts from air emissions have decreased drastically during the last 35 years and that these impacts can be partly or fully offset by recovering energy which otherwise should have been produced from fossil fuels like coal or natural gas.     

A multi-criteria decision analysis assessment of waste paper management options

The use of Multi-criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) was investigated in an exercise using a panel of local residents and stakeholders to assess the options for managing waste paper on the Isle of Wight. Seven recycling, recovery and disposal options were considered by the panel who evaluated each option against seven environmental, financial and social criteria. The panel preferred options where the waste was managed on the island with gasification and recycling achieving the highest scores. Exporting the waste to the English mainland for incineration or landfill proved to be the least preferred options. This research has demonstrated that MCDA is an effective way of involving community groups in waste management decision making.     

Life Cycle Assessment of landfill biogas management: Sensitivity to diffuse and combustion air emissions

Goal and scopeThe life cycle inventory of landfill emissions is a key point in Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of waste management options and is highly subject to discussion. Result sensitivity to data inventory is accounted for through the implementation of scenarios that help examine how waste landfilling should be modeled in LCA.MethodFour landfill biogas management options are environmentally evaluated in a Life Cycle Assessment perspective: (1) no biogas management (open dump), conventional landfill with (2) flaring, (3) combined heat and power (CHP) production in an internal combustion engine and (4) biogas upgrading for use as a fuel in buses. Average, maximum and minimum literature values are considered both for combustion emission factors in flares and engines and for trace pollutant concentrations in biogas.ResultsBiogas upgrading for use as a fuel in buses appears as the most relevant option with respect to most non-toxic impact categories and ecotoxicity, when considering average values for trace gas concentrations and combustion emission factors. Biogas combustion in an engine for CHP production shows the best performances in terms of climate change, but generates significantly higher photochemical oxidant formation and marine eutrophication impact potentials than flaring or biogas upgrading for use as a fuel in buses.Interpretation and discussionHowever the calculated environmental impact potentials of landfill biogas management options depend largely on the trace gas concentrations implemented in the model. The use of average or extreme values reported in the literature significantly modifies the impact potential of a given scenario (up to two orders of magnitude for open dumps with respect to human toxicity). This should be taken into account when comparing landfilling with other waste management options. Also, the actual performances of a landfill top cover (in terms of oxidation rates) and combustion technology (in terms of emission factors) appear as key parameters affecting the ranking of biogas management options.     

Life cycle inventory analyses for five waste management options for discarded newspaper.

This paper presents the results of life cycle inventory (LCI) analyses that were carried out to determine the environmental impacts (emissions, resource extractions and land use) of different newspaper waste management options for the Helsinki Metropolitan Area (HMA). LCI analyses were performed for five product systems, in which discarded newspapers were divided into two streams: separately collected newspapers and newspapers in mixed waste. In all the options, the manufacturing and printing processes of newspaper were kept unchanged. The waste management alternatives included combinations of material recycling, energy recovery and landfilling. These product systems were modelled using the current collection rate of newspaper and four additional collection rates. The LCIs of the product systems showed that the life cycle phase causing the most environmental impacts was the paper mill. When comparing the different waste management systems, the energy recovery options were in general superior to landfilling. The ecological implications of the increased energy recovery and decreased material recycling of newspaper were, however, not yet considered in the study. These aspects were assessed in the life cycle impact assessment (LCIA), which was performed after the LCI phase.     

Solid waste management practices and review of recovery and recycling operations in Turkey

This paper provides a general overview of solid waste data and management practices employed in Turkey during the last decade. Municipal solid waste statistics and management practices including waste recovery and recycling initiatives have been evaluated. Detailed data on solid waste management practices including collection, recovery and disposal, together with the results of cost analyses, have been presented. Based on these evaluations basic cost estimations on collection and sorting of recyclable solid waste in Turkey have been provided. The results indicate that the household solid waste generation in Turkey, per capita, is around 0.6 kg/year, whereas municipal solid waste generation is close to 1 kg/year. The major constituents of municipal solid waste are organic in nature and approximately 1/4 of municipal solid waste is recyclable. Separate collection programmes for recyclable household waste by more than 60 municipalities, continuing in excess of 3 years, demonstrate solid evidence for public acceptance and continuing support from the citizens. Opinion polls indicate that more than 80% of the population in the project regions is ready and willing to participate in separate collection programmes. The analysis of output data of the Material Recovery Facilities shows that, although paper, including cardboard, is the main constituent, the composition of recyclable waste varies strongly by the source or the type of collection point.     

Energy efficiency of substance and energy recovery of selected waste fractions

In order to reduce the ecological impact of resource exploitation, the EU calls for sustainable options to increase the efficiency and productivity of the utilization of natural resources. This target can only be achieved by considering resource recovery from waste comprehensively. However, waste management measures have to be investigated critically and all aspects of substance-related recycling and energy recovery have to be carefully balanced. This article compares recovery methods for selected waste fractions with regard to their energy efficiency.Whether material recycling or energy recovery is the most energy efficient solution, is a question of particular relevance with regard to the following waste fractions: paper and cardboard, plastics and biowaste and also indirectly metals. For the described material categories material recycling has advantages compared to energy recovery. In accordance with the improved energy efficiency of substance opposed to energy recovery, substance-related recycling causes lower emissions of green house gases.For the fractions paper and cardboard, plastics, biowaste and metals it becomes apparent, that intensification of the separate collection systems in combination with a more intensive use of sorting technologies can increase the extent of material recycling. Collection and sorting systems must be coordinated. The objective of the overall system must be to achieve an optimum of the highest possible recovery rates in combination with a high quality of recyclables.The energy efficiency of substance related recycling of biowaste can be increased by intensifying the use of anaerobic technologies. In order to increase the energy efficiency of the overall system, the energy efficiencies of energy recovery plants must be increased so that the waste unsuitable for substance recycling is recycled or treated with the highest possible energy yield.     

A holistic life cycle analysis of waste management scenarios at increasing source segregation intensity: The case of an Italian urban area

Life cycle analysis of several waste management scenarios for an Italian urban area was performed on the basis of different source segregation collection (SS) intensities from 0% up to 52%. Source segregated waste was recycled and or/recovered by composting. Residual waste management options were by landfilling, incineration with energy recovery or solid recovered fuel (SRF) production to substitute for coal. The increase in fuel and materials consumption due to increase in SS had negligible influence on the environmental impact of the system. Recycling operations such as incineration and SRF were always advantageous for impact reduction. There was lower impact for an SS of 52% even though the difference with the SS intensity of 35% was quite limited, about 15%. In all the configurations analyzed, the best environmental performance was achieved for the management system producing SRF by the biodrying process.     

The development and achievements of EU waste policy

While waste amounts are still growing in the EU, there is a clear shift in the waste management options employed to deal with waste. Less waste is landfilled and more is recycled or incinerated with energy recovery. In all, 62% of municipal waste was landfilled in 1995, but that figure had fallen to 40% by 2008. Waste management has a strong influence on the environment by either provoking or preventing impacts; for example, greenhouse gas emissions vary significantly between treatment options. The overall CO2-equivalent impacts from municipal waste management have in the same period been more than halved. The drivers for this change in waste management have been EU and national policies and legislation that have set up clear targets for recycling and recovery of waste. This article gives an overview of the set targets, the achieved results, and the consequences for greenhouse gas emissions of municipal waste management.     

Strategy for separation and treatment of disaster waste: a manual for earthquake and tsunami disaster waste management in Japan

Shortly after the March 11th earthquake and tsunami in eastern Japan, a Task Team for Disaster Waste Management and Reconstruction was established within the Japan Society of Material Cycles and Waste Management (JSMCWM). One of the major tasks undertaken by the team was to create a manual entitled, Strategies for Separation and Treatment of Disaster Waste. In this paper, this JSMCWM manual is introduced, followed by a review of existing guidelines for disaster waste management in various countries. We identify useful guidelines created by international agencies, national and local governments. The JSMCWM manual adds our new experiences, especially characterized by a huge scale of disaster and tsunami information, to the existing knowledge with an emphasis on separation and subsequent treatment options. It should be desirable to share our knowledge and experiences, not only domestically but also with other countries in the world, especially regions that could be affected by large earthquake and tsunami events.     

Waste management from pulp and paper production in the European Union

Eleven million tonnes of waste are produced yearly by the European pulp and paper industry, of which 70% originates from the production of deinked recycled paper. Wastes are very diverse in composition and consist of rejects, different types of sludges and ashes in mills having on-site incineration treatment. The production of pulp and paper from virgin pulp generates less waste but the waste has similar properties to waste from the production of deinked pulp, although with less inorganics. Due to legislation and increased taxes, landfills are quickly being eliminated as a final destination for wastes in Europe, and incineration with energy recovery is becoming the main waste recovery method. Other options such as pyrolysis, gasification, land spreading, composting and reuse as building material are being applied, although research is still needed for optimization of the processes. Due to the large volumes of waste generated, the high moisture content of the waste and the changing waste composition as a result of process conditions, recovery methods are usually expensive and their environmental impact is still uncertain. For this reason, it is necessary to continue research on different applications of wastes, while taking into account the environmental and economic factors of these waste treatments.     

Measuring waste prevention

The Waste Framework Directive (WFD-2008/98/EC) has set clear waste prevention procedures, including reporting, reviewing, monitoring and evaluating. Based on the WFD, the European Commission and will offer support to Member States on how to develop waste prevention programmes through guidelines and information sharing on best practices. Monitoring and evaluating waste prevention activities are critical, as they constitute the main tools to enable policy makers, at the national and local level, to build their strategic plans and ensure that waste prevention initiatives are effective and deliver behaviour change. However, how one can measure something that is not there, remains an important and unresolved research question. The paper reviews and attempts to evaluate the methods that are being used for measuring waste prevention and the impact of relevant implemented activities at the household level, as the available data is still limited.     

Modelling municipal solid waste generation: a review

The objective of this paper is to review previously published models of municipal solid waste generation and to propose an implementation guideline which will provide a compromise between information gain and cost-efficient model development. The 45 modelling approaches identified in a systematic literature review aim at explaining or estimating the present or future waste generation using economic, socio-demographic or management-orientated data. A classification was developed in order to categorise these highly heterogeneous models according to the following criteria--the regional scale, the modelled waste streams, the hypothesised independent variables and the modelling method. A procedural practice guideline was derived from a discussion of the underlying models in order to propose beneficial design options concerning regional sampling (i.e., number and size of observed areas), waste stream definition and investigation, selection of independent variables and model validation procedures. The practical application of the findings was demonstrated with two case studies performed on different regional scales, i.e., on a household and on a city level. The findings of this review are finally summarised in the form of a relevance tree for methodology selection.     

Challenges when performing economic optimization of waste treatment: A review

Strategic and operational decisions in waste management, in particular with respect to investments in new treatment facilities, are needed due to a number of factors, including continuously increasing amounts of waste, political demands for efficient utilization of waste resources, and the decommissioning of existing waste treatment facilities. Optimization models can assist in ensuring that these investment strategies are economically feasible.Various economic optimization models for waste treatment have been developed which focus on different parameters. Models focusing on transport are one example, but models focusing on energy production have also been developed, as well as models which take into account a plant’s economies of scale, environmental impact, material recovery and social costs. Finally, models combining different criteria for the selection of waste treatment methods in multi-criteria analysis have been developed.A thorough updated review of the existing models is presented, and the main challenges and crucial parameters that need to be taken into account when assessing the economic performance of waste treatment alternatives are identified. The review article will assist both policy-makers and model-developers involved in assessing the economic performance of waste treatment alternatives.     

Application of the US decision support tool for materials and waste management

The US Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) launched the Resource Conservation Challenge (RCC) in 2002 to help reduce waste and move towards more sustainable resource consumption. The objective of the RCC is to help communities, industries, and the public think in terms of materials management rather than waste disposal. Reducing cost, finding more efficient and effective strategies to manage municipal waste, and thinking in terms of materials management requires a holistic approach that considers life-cycle environmental tradeoffs. The US EPA's National Risk Management Research Laboratory has led the development of a municipal solid waste decision support tool (MSW-DST). The computer software can be used to calculate life-cycle environmental tradeoffs and full costs of different waste management or materials recovery programs. The environmental methodology is based on the use of life-cycle assessment and the cost methodology is based on the use of full-cost accounting. Life-cycle inventory (LCI) environmental impacts and costs are calculated from the point of collection, handling, transport, treatment, and disposal. For any materials that are recovered for recycling, offsets are calculated to reflect potential emissions savings from use of virgin materials. The use of the MSW-DST provides a standardized format and consistent basis to compare alternatives. This paper provides an illustration of how the MSW-DST can be used by evaluating ten management strategies for a hypothetical medium-sized community to compare the life-cycle environmental and cost tradeoffs. The LCI results from the MSW-DST are then used as inputs into another US EPA tool, the Tool for the reduction and assessment of chemical and other environmental impacts, to convert the LCI results into impact indicators. The goal of this paper is to demonstrate how the MSW-DST can be used to identify and balance multiple criteria (costs and environmental impacts) when evaluating options for materials and waste management. This type of approach is needed in identifying strategies that lead to reduced waste and more sustainable resource consumption. This helps to meet the goals established in the US EPA's Resource Conservation Challenge.     

Greenhouse gases emission from municipal waste management: The role of separate collection

The municipal solid waste management significantly contributes to the emission in the atmosphere of greenhouse gases (e.g. CO₂, CH₄, N₂O) and therefore the management process from collection to treatment and disposal has to be optimized in order to reduce these emissions. In this paper, starting from the average composition of undifferentiated municipal solid waste in Italy, the effect of separate collection on greenhouse gases emissions from municipal waste management has been assessed. Different combinations of separate collection scenarios and disposal options (i.e. landfilling and incineration) have been considered. The effect of energy recovery from waste both in landfills and incinerators has also been addressed. The results outline how a separate collection approach can have a significant effect on the emission of greenhouse gases and how wise municipal solid waste management, implying the adoption of Best Available Technologies (i.e. biogas recovery and exploitation system in landfills and energy recovery system in Waste to Energy plants), can not only significantly reduce greenhouse gases emissions but, in certain cases, can also make the overall process a carbon sink. Moreover it has been shown that separate collection of plastic is a major issue when dealing with global warming relevant emissions from municipal solid waste management.     

Selection criteria for waste management processes in manned space missions

Management of waste produced during manned space exploration missions will be an important function of advanced life support systems. Waste materials can be thrown away or recovered for reuse. The first approach relies totally on external supplies to replace depleted resources while the second approach regenerates resources internally. The selection of appropriate waste management processes will be based upon criteria which include mission and hardware characteristics as well as overall system considerations. Mission characteristics discussed include destination, duration, crew size, operating environment, and transportation costs. Hardware characteristics include power, mass and volume requirements as well as suitability for a given task. Overall system considerations are essential to assure optimization for the entire mission rather than for an individual system. For example, a waste management system designed for a short trip to the Moon will probably not be the best one for an extended mission to Mars. The purpose of this paper is to develop a methodology to identify and compare viable waste management options for selection of an appropriate waste management system.     

Carbon--making the right choice for waste management in developing countries

Due to initiatives such as the clean development mechanism (CDM), reducing greenhouse gas emissions for a developing country can offer an important route to attracting investment in a variety of qualifying project areas, including waste management. To date CDM projects have been largely confined to schemes that control emission from landfill, but projects that avoid landfilling are beginning to be submitted. In considering the waste options which might be suitable for developing countries certain ones, such as energy from waste, have been discounted for a range of reasons related primarily to the lack of technical and other support services required for these more sophisticated process trains. The paper focuses on six options: the base case of open dumping; three options for landfill (passive venting, gas capture with flaring, and gas capture with energy production), composting and anaerobic digestion with electricity production and composting of the digestate. A range of assumptions were necessary for making the comparisons based on the effective carbon emissions, and these assumptions will change from project to project. The highest impact in terms of carbon emissions was from using a sanitary landfill without either gas flaring or electricity production; this was worse than the baseline case using open dumpsites. Landfills with either flaring or energy production from the collected gas both produced similar positive carbon emissions, but these were substantially lower than both open dumping and sanitary landfill without flaring or energy production. Composting or anaerobic digestion with energy production and composting of the digestate were the two best options with composting being neutral in terms of carbon emissions and anaerobic digestion being carbon negative. These generic conclusions were tested for sensitivity by modifying the input waste composition and were found to be robust, suggesting that subject to local study to confirm assumptions made, the opportunity for developing CDM projects to attract investment to improved waste management infrastructure is significant. Kyoto credits in excess of 1 tCO2e/t of waste could be realised.     

Techno-economic assessment of municipal solid waste management in Jordan

Mismanagement of solid waste leads to public health risks, adverse environmental impacts and other socio-economic problems. This is obvious in many developing countries around the world. Currently, several countries have realized that the way they manage their solid wastes does not satisfy the objectives of sustainable development. Therefore, these countries, including Jordan, which forms the case study presented here, have decided to move away from traditional solid waste management (SWM) options to more integrated solid waste management approaches. Unfortunately, in many developing countries like Jordan, the lack of adequate resources to implement the necessary changes is posing a serious obstacle. The present paper discusses the various practices and challenges of solid waste management in Jordan from both a technical and economic perspective. An overview of the current practices and their environmental implications in three major cities of the country, which generate more than 70% of the country's solid waste, is presented. Recent literature on solid waste management in Jordan has been reviewed; and data on the total amount of municipal solid waste generated, compositional variations over the last two decades, and future projections are presented. The necessity, importance and needs of solid waste recovery and reuse are identified. The review of the legal frameworks indicated that there is a need for detailed and clear regulations dealing specifically with solid waste. The service cost analysis revealed that none of the municipalities in Jordan sufficiently recover the cost of the services, with more than 50% being subsidized from the municipalities' budgets. The allocation of the available resources was analyzed and service performance indicators assessed. Factors that should be taken into consideration when making the decision to move from a traditional SWM approach to a more integrated approach are highlighted and suggestions for a more smooth transition are recommended.     

Chemical hazards associated with treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment

This review paper summarizes the existing knowledge on the chemical hazards associated with recycling and other end-of-life treatment options of waste electrical and electronic equipment (e-waste). The hazards arise from the presence of heavy metals (e.g., mercury, cadmium, lead, etc.), flame retardants (e.g., pentabromophenol, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), tetrabromobisphenol-A (TBBPA), etc.) and other potentially harmful substances in e-waste. If improperly managed, the substances may pose significant human and environmental health risks. The review describes the potentially hazardous content of e-waste, examines the existing e-waste management practices and presents scientific data on human exposure to chemicals, workplace and environmental pollution associated with the three major e-waste management options, i.e., recycling, incineration and landfilling. The existing e-waste management practices and associated hazards are reviewed separately for developed and developing countries. Finally, based on this review, the paper identifies gaps in the existing knowledge and makes some recommendations for future research.