Iranian Journal of

Background and Objective: Due to the increasing trend of municipal solid waste (MSW) production, if a suitable management system is not applied, it will lead to environmental pollution and endanger human health. The aim of this study was to compare different scenarios of waste management in Chalous city with life cycle assessment (LCA) approach and to select the most efficient method in terms of environmental adaptation.
Materials and Methods: After investigation of the quantitative and qualitative characterization of the produced wastes and the current waste disposal method in Chalous city, the obtained results were used to evaluate the life cycle of six different waste management scenarios; including the combination of four methods of composting, recycling, incineration along with energy extraction and sanitary landfilling. Emissions from various scenarios were assessed using IWM-2 model.
Results: The current system of municipal waste management in Chalus (scenario 1) with ecological index of 1.73+06 poses the highest pollution load into the environment. The inclusion of compost disposal methods in the organic waste sector and recycling of biodegradable materials significantly reduces the emissions of environmental pollutants by increasing the amount of materials for recycling and reuse, as well as preventing emissions from raw material production. The fifth scenario (60% compost, 30% recycling and 10% sanitary landfill) with ecological index of -2.00+05 was known as the lowest contamination scenario.
Conclusion: Considering that a high percentage of Chalous municipal solid waste composition is perishable materials (organic waste), simultaneous application of composting and recycling methods can be a suitable option for optimal management of wastes in Chalous city and play an important role in reducing the environmental pollution load.

Background and Objective: Various aspects including the environmental burdens, social and economic consequences of the waste management(WM) scenarios must be considered to come up with a comprehensive WM plan. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) approach is a systematic method to quantify the environmental burdens of each WM scenario.
Materials and Methods: This study used an LCA approach to develop a decision support system to analyze different scenarios of WM. Local and global databases were used to develop a comprehensive life cycle inventory database. The model comes with a graphical user interface in Persian to make it easier to use by a wide range of customers. Finally, to evaluate the model, three scenarios were assessed in Karaj city, Iran.
Results: To the best of our knowledge, this model is the first attempt to automate the process of waste management scenarios evaluation in Iran. The model enables users to easily and quickly simulate a wide range of scenarios. All calculations will be carried out by the software in the background and the user only needs to determine his/her scenario of concern which is very easy owing to the user-friend GUI of the software. The model was evaluated by analyzing the current WM in Karaj. The results showed that the waste collection system is the main source of environmental pollution of the WM in Karaj city due to the inefficient system of the waste collection and poor fleet fuel efficiency.
Conclusion: This tool allows users to gather detailed information about the waste management systems. In this way, the user can make informed decisions about the most suitable waste management scenario in a city.