Sustainable financing and policy models for municipal composting

With rapid urbanization and economic development, cities are producing more than 1.3 billion tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) annually and expected to generate approximately 2.2 billion tons by 2025 (Hoornweg, et al., 2013). Approximately half of the global waste generated consists of biodegradable organic materials, but this ratio is typically much higher in developing countries. This organic waste is primarily disposed of in open dumps and landfills and decomposes to produce 3-4 percent of the world’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (United Nations Environment Programme, 2012; Blanco et al. 2014). At
present, only approximately 8% of municipal organic waste is being utilized productively through composting, a sustainable organics waste management solution (Hoornweg and Bhada-Tata, 2012).
In spite of the opportunities surrounding organic waste reutilization, varying from simple composting to anaerobic digestion (AD), MSW management is a significant challenge facing municipal authorities across the world.

Providing solid waste management services is costly. In developing countries, waste management services can account for 20-50% of a municipality’s recurring budget, with 80-90% used for waste collection alone (Hoornweg and Bhada-Tata, 2012). Often times, only a fraction of MSW is formally collected and even less is sustainably processed or properly landfilled. As a result, a great deal of MSW is either disposed of in poorly managed dumpsites, burned, or indiscriminately discarded in streets and local waterways, endangering human health and the environment. Rapid population growth and economic development across low-income countries has led to increases in consumption and associated waste generation rates. While simultaneously faced with inadequate financial resources and institutional capacity constraints,
governments are under significant pressure as they attempt to manage the environmental and financial impacts of increasing volumes of solid waste. Utilizing organic waste productively reduces waste volume and diverts waste from landfills, which not only prolongs landfill life and reduces costs but also typically improves the state of public health, waterways, and long-term land value.

source:

https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/entities/publication/e1aac77a-5258-5927-9268-847c754cb9f5