Life Cycle Assessment of Potential Municipal Solid Waste Management Practices for Itanagar City, India

International Journal of Civil Engineering

© 2025 by SSRG - IJCE Journal

Volume 12 Issue 3

Year of Publication : 2025

Authors : Naka Chukhu, Ajay Bharti

10.14445/23488352/IJCE-V12I3P114

How to Cite?

Naka Chukhu, Ajay Bharti, "Life Cycle Assessment of Potential Municipal Solid Waste Management Practices for Itanagar City, India," SSRG International Journal of Civil Engineering, vol. 12,  no. 3, pp. 150-161, 2025. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14445/23488352/IJCE-V12I3P114

Abstract:

This study evaluates the environmental impacts of various Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM) scenarios for Itanagar City, governed by the Itanagar Municipal Corporation (IMC), using Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) as an analytical tool. Four waste management scenarios were analyzed: Scenario S1 serves as the baseline, indicating the existing waste management practices; Scenario S2 involves a sanitary landfill without landfill gas capture; Scenario S3 features a sanitary landfill with a 50% landfill gas collection efficiency; and Scenario S4 proposes an Integrated Waste Management approach, incorporating recycling, composting, and inert landfilling. One tonne of Municipal Solid Waste was designated as the functional unit for the assessment. Primary data were obtained through sampling, surveys, and literature review. The scenarios were compared using the Recipe Midpoint H method across five impact categories: Global Warming Potential (GWP100), Human Toxicity Potential (HTP), Particulate Matter Formation Potential (PMFP), Photochemical Oxidant Formation Potential (POFP), and Terrestrial Ecotoxicity Potential (TETP). This analysis was conducted with the help of openLCA software in conjunction with Eco-Invent databases. Results demonstrate that Scenario S1 (baseline) performed worst across most impact categories, while Scenario S2 exhibited the highest Global Warming Potential (2.334×10³ kg CO2-Eq) and Photochemical Oxidant Formation Potential (9.499×10⁻¹ kg NMVOC-Eq) for each tonne of MSW. In contrast, Scenario S4, which implements an Integrated Waste Management strategy, emerged as the least environmentally damaging across all evaluated categories.

Keywords:

Life Cycle Assessment, Municipal solid waste management, Itanagar Municipal Corporation, openLCA, Integrated waste management.

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