Environmental Linkages between Urban Form and Municipal Solid Waste Management Infrastructure

Abstract

The context of this paper is the interface between sustainability, urban form, municipal solid waste management infrastructure, and environmental impacts. Collection and haulage systems for solid waste and recyclable materials were analyzed from an air emissions perspective for two hypothetical cities representing two sustainability extremes. Alternative fuels were also considered to determine if reductions in air pollutant emissions could be achieved. A case study for the municipal solid waste management system for the city of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, was also conducted. Urban form was found to play a significant role in determining emission levels from a municipal solid waste collection and transport system. Urban forms with higher densities have considerably less pollutants generated from collection and transport due to the shorter travel distances. A methanol-fueled fleet for curbside collection provided the lowest air emissions. The air emission results for the case study municipality lay between the two hypothetical cities due to the mix of urban form and residential population densities currently found in Hamilton.