Comparative Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of two different waste managements: landfill and anaerobic digestion

Waste management should be approached from the perspective of the entire cycle of material use, which includes production, distribution and consumption as well as waste collection and disposal. Whilst immediate priority must be given to effective collection and disposal, waste reduction and recycling should be pursued as equally important, longer-term objectives. The principles of sustainable waste management strategies are thus to: 1) minimise waste generation; 2) maximise waste recycling and reuse, and 3) ensure the safe and environmentally sound disposal of waste. This study is focusing on the comparison of two MSW management strategy: 1) disposal of MSW in sanitary landfill with biogas caption and 2) anaerobic digestion of organic fraction of MSW with biogas caption and compost production before landfill disposal.