REVISTA DYNA ENERGÍA

Key words:

Gestión de residuos, carga ambiental, gasto energético, emisión de CO2, Indicadores ambientales, modelo de procesos, recolección de RSD, Waste management, environmental burden, energy consumption, CO2 emission, environmental indicators, process model, HSW collection.

Article type:

ARTICULO DE INVESTIGACION / RESEARCH ARTICLE

Section:

RESEARCH ARTICLES

ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to design a model to manage household solid waste (HSW) collection processes that determines: the monetary costs and the environmental burden regarding energy consumption and CO2 emissions. The study evaluated the HSW practices in a rural community with a high ecological value (i.e. declared as a Biosphere Reserve, UNESCO) having an area of 1,541 km2 located in the mountain area of central-southern Chile. The inhabitants of this regionare geographically dispersed and their landfill is approximately 127 km away from the farthest collection point in the community. HSW services are responsibility of the municipality, they decide methods and schedules for waste collection.
The collection and transport of HSW are done by highly loaded vehicles, (12 tons each app), that generate significant economic costs for the municipality and involve a high environmental burden in terms of energy consumption and CO2 emissions.
The proposed model follows calculations and measurements of indicators that help in decision making and planification of the processes evaluated in this study. Regarding the results, the model yields relevant information in the HSW processes, such as the most significant costs, which allows greater clarity and helps in decision making when managing, planning and calculating costs or evaluating budgets for future actions. Additionally, the model determines CO2 emissions and energy expenditure generated, which is crucial information for management and can support municipality's environmental certification.
This model can be extrapolated to different types of transportation such as public, private, passengers, etc. And can also be used to develop a technological package that supports management and decision making for these types of companies or businesses. It can also be complimented with programming models for vehicle trajectory in order to optimize costs and reduce circulation which will ultimately decrease energy consumption and CO2 emission.

Key words: Waste management, environmental burden, energy consumption, CO2 emission, environmental indicators, process model, HSW collection.