Development of municipal solid waste management guidelines in biological crisis based on international experiences and considering local techno-economic characteristics

• Published in: Results in engineering 2024-06, Vol.22, p.102052, Article 102052
• Main Authors: Najafi, Soudeh, Khosravani, Farhad, Yousefi, Mahmood, Jandaghi, Jafar, Valizadeh, Behzad, Torkashvand, Javad
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Covid-19; Developing countries; Infectious waste; Urban management
• ISSN: 2590-1230; 2590-1230
• DOI: 10.1016/j.rineng.2024.102052

In addition to health consequences, the Covid-19 pandemic has had important effects on the environment and lifestyle. Municipal solid waste management faced serious challenges due to consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic. In this study, the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the quantity and composition of municipal solid waste in Tehran were investigated. The international experiences of municipal waste management in the Covid-19 pandemic were reviewed and the results were used to develop a guideline for waste management in epidemic conditions adapted to local characteristics. The results showed that changes in the quantity of municipal solid waste affected by the Covid-19 pandemic had temporal and spatial variation. The most change in quantity by 15.81% was seen at the beginning of the pandemic, and non-recyclable waste had the most ratio change among the components of municipal solid waste (144%). The emergence of scattered point sources of infectious waste generation was the most important consequence of the epidemic in municipal solid waste management. These experiences were the basis for defining a guideline for the management of municipal solid waste in biological crises. A guideline in six activities and more than 90 items based on the local characteristics such as available equipment, general culture, local economy, and quantitative changes was defined. •Biological crisis affects quantity and composition of municipal solid waste.•Waste management in the biological crisis must be adapted to the new conditions.•Local techno-economical characteristics are effective in solutions.•Regional guidelines based on international experiences is a suitable solution.