Transition to recycling versus incineration in municipal solid waste management: Evaluating the speed of greenhouse gas emission reduction.

ABSTRACT: With the urgent need for climate action, reducing landfill emissions is crucial. Motivated by potential differences in time required to transition from landfilling to recycling versus incineration of municipal solid waste (MSW), this study assesses which of the two pathways offers a quicker and more robust solution for mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in MSW management. The speed of transition to waste incineration and recycling was analysed retrospectively among frontrunners in landfill reduction. In three selected cases, the speed of GHG emission reduction resulting from their transition mainly to waste incineration (Finland), recycling (Italy) and a combination of those (Poland) was calculated using life cycle assessment (LCA). Robustness of the results was tested by varying ke

SUBMITTER: Zaikova A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12618704 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature