Scholarlink

<p>With rapid urbanization and economic growth, municipal solid waste (MSW) management has become a vital sector for reducing carbon emissions and advancing the circular economy. However,&#xa0;existing studies often overlook the life-cycle carbon emissions and recycling benefits of complex waste treatment processes. Thus, an innovative carbon footprint analysis framework was developed to evaluate treatment processes for&#xa0;various waste compositions, with case studies conducted in five major economies. The current carbon footprints of MSW treatment are&#xa0;quantified as 77.51 Mt CO<sub>2</sub>-eq (China), 89.47 Mt CO<sub>2</sub>-eq (the U.S.), 23.26 Mt CO<sub>2</sub>-eq (the EU), –&#xa0;5.57 Mt CO<sub>2</sub>-eq (Japan), and 34.84 Mt CO<sub>2</sub>-eq (India). The key contributors include landfill (LF) methane emissions from organic components, fossil CO<sub>2</sub> emissions from incineration (INC), and offsets from generated electricity. Scenario analysis reveals that future waste growth driven by economic development would contribute nearly three times the emission increase. While, grid decarbonization causes a 14.7% rebound effect due to&#xa0;diminished offset of energy recovery treatments. In addition, enhanced recycling reduces direct GHG emissions from incineration and increases the offsets, resulting in a 94% reduction in total carbon footprint of waste disposal. This research provides a robust quantitative basis for policymakers to design carbon–neutral roadmaps, highlighting the transformative potential of sustainable waste management in the&#xa0;transition to a low-carbon, circular economy.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Carbon footprint analysis of MSW management in major economies and future mitigation potential via enhanced recycling

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年9月20日

查看全文
  • Mei Li,
  • Shuying Huang,
  • Jingwen Wang,
  • Dungang Gu,
  • Tingting Hu,
  • Rui Liu,
  • Guanghui Li,
  • Jiaqi Lu

摘要

With rapid urbanization and economic growth, municipal solid waste (MSW) management has become a vital sector for reducing carbon emissions and advancing the circular economy. However, existing studies often overlook the life-cycle carbon emissions and recycling benefits of complex waste treatment processes. Thus, an innovative carbon footprint analysis framework was developed to evaluate treatment processes for various waste compositions, with case studies conducted in five major economies. The current carbon footprints of MSW treatment are quantified as 77.51 Mt CO2-eq (China), 89.47 Mt CO2-eq (the U.S.), 23.26 Mt CO2-eq (the EU), – 5.57 Mt CO2-eq (Japan), and 34.84 Mt CO2-eq (India). The key contributors include landfill (LF) methane emissions from organic components, fossil CO2 emissions from incineration (INC), and offsets from generated electricity. Scenario analysis reveals that future waste growth driven by economic development would contribute nearly three times the emission increase. While, grid decarbonization causes a 14.7% rebound effect due to diminished offset of energy recovery treatments. In addition, enhanced recycling reduces direct GHG emissions from incineration and increases the offsets, resulting in a 94% reduction in total carbon footprint of waste disposal. This research provides a robust quantitative basis for policymakers to design carbon–neutral roadmaps, highlighting the transformative potential of sustainable waste management in the transition to a low-carbon, circular economy.