The changing face of waste management – considerations when conducting a waste characterisation study

Abstract

Changing the face of waste management in South Africa, includes waste diversion from landfill to alternative management options. There are a number of interventions to consider which may vary from very low tech, labour intensive solutions to extremely high tech, capital intensive technology options. Making an informed decision about the preferred technology choice will require a certain level of knowledge of the composition of the waste stream at hand. The level of detail that is required from the waste characterisation study will be determined by site specific conditions, and the level of change you want to achieve. In some instances, a mere screening exercise will do the trick, but if the envisaged change include high tech, capital intensive solutions, you may want to have a high level of confidence in the characteristics and volumes of waste that will be diverted to the particular solution in question. This paper will unpack the considerations to take into account when conducting or evaluating a waste characterisation study in support of changed waste management in South Africa.