Life-Cycle Carbon Emissions from the Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Landfill, a Case Study in China

With the advancement of urbanization and the rise of residents’ consumption levels, the production of MSW in China is increasing. The MSW in China is mainly landfilled, which result in producing greenhouse gas such as CO2 and CH4 with carbon emissions. To quantify the contribution of municipal solid waste landfilled in China to the carbon emissions, taking the Tianziling sanitary landfill as a case to study, based on the life-cycle assessment, the carbon emissions of sources are calculated and analysed. It is found that the carbon emissions of the sanitary landfill mainly come from the landfill gas treatment. Combined with the “double carbon strategy”, the carbon emissions of the Tianziling sanitary landfill have reached its peak in 2035. In preparation for the coming carbon neutralization, some suggestions on possible carbon neutralization paths are put forward.