A circular economy approach to exploit the value of urban solid waste

A circular economy approach to exploit the value of urban solid waste: Study case of San Cristobal de las Casas, south-east Mexico

Gonzalez Veugelers, Valente (TU Delft Technology, Policy and Management)

Mogollon, J.M. (mentor)
Hackauf, U.D. (graduation committee)

Delft University of Technology
Universiteit Leiden

Industrial Ecology

2020-06-18

It is possible to recover and maintain the value of urban solid waste (USW) through the implementation of circular economy practices in the waste management strategy. This can have social, economic and environmental benefits. One of the most noticeable benefits is the reduction landfilled USW. To achieve this it is necessary to, firstly, understand the nature and magnitude of the USW problem and, secondly, implement treatment techniques for the different types of USW; yet these must fit the local socio-economic context. This quantitative research takes as a study case the city of San Cristobal de las Casas (SCLC), which is a main tourist destination in the south-east of Mexico. The research is divided in three parts. In the first part the nature and magnitude of the USW problem are mapped; this includes a field study of the USW footprint cause by tourism. The second part is an evaluation of the treatment techniques, for types of waste that are identified in the study case, that can be applied in the city to recover value from USW and match the socio-economic context. The third part, is a circular business case where organic waste, the largest waste type in terms of mass, is treated with pyrolysis to produce charcoal briquettes; the intention of this product is to reduce the consumption of cooking char and firewood from illegal origin in the city. The results demonstrate that, using the approach found in this research, it is possible to obtain a significant economic return and, at the same time, social and environmental benefits from the USW in SCLC by using a circular economy approach. Furthermore, these circular solutions can significantly reduce the amount of landfilled USW.

urban solid waste
circular economy
waste management
landfill
circular business model
waste generation rate per capita
tourism waste footprint
charcoal briquettes
pyrolysis

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:7ac41f94-45c3-4710-89d5-25ac91139256

Student theses

master thesis

© 2020 Valente Gonzalez Veugelers