What a Waste : A Global Review of Solid Waste Management
Open accessAbstract
Solid waste management is the one thing just about every city government provides for its residents. While service levels, environmental impacts and costs vary dramatically, solid waste management is arguably the most important municipal service and serves as a prerequisite for other municipal action. As the world hurtles toward its urban future, the amount of municipal solid waste (MSW), one of the most important by-products of an urban lifestyle, is growing even faster than the rate of urbanization. Ten years ago there were 2.9 billion urban residents who generated about 0.64 kg of MSW per person per day (0.68 billion tonnes per year). This report estimates that today these amounts have increased to about 3 billion residents generating 1.2 kg per person per day (1.3 billion tonnes per year). By 2025 this will likely increase to 4.3 billion urban residents generating about 1.42 kg/capita/day of municipal solid waste (2.2 billion tonnes per year).
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Less than 50% of waste generated is collected in low-income countries; 50% to 80% is collected in middle-income countries; and more than 90% is collected in high-income countries.
“According to Hoornweg and Bhada-Tata [4], less than 50% of waste generated is collected in low-income countries: 50% to 80% is collected in middle-income countries, and more than 90% is collected in high-income countries.”
From Raising Awareness on Solid Waste Management through Formal Education for Sustainability: A Developing Countries Evidence Review (2021) · cites this paper as Hoornweg and Bhada-Tata [4]
A monumental amount of municipal solid waste is generated globally, at 1.3 billion tonnes per year.
“a monumental amount of municipal solid waste generated globally (1.3 billion tonnes per year) [40].”
From Digitisation and the Circular Economy: A Review of Current Research and Future Trends (2018) · cites this paper as [40]
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- Authors
- Hoornweg, D., & Bhada-Tata, P.
- ORCID
- Hoornweg, Daniel
- Venue
- World Bank, Washington, DC eBooks
- Publisher
- World Bank, Washington, DC
- Published
- 2012-03
- Pages
- 1-116
- OpenAlex
- W1665009454
- Cited by
- 3,129
- References
- 21
- Citations by year
- 2026: 153 · 2025: 172 · 2024: 185 · 2023: 236 · 2022: 239 · 2021: 364 · 2020: 387 · 2019: 328 · 2018: 302 · 2017: 256 · 2016: 203 · 2015: 138 · 2014: 100 · 2013: 56 · 2012: 5
- FWCI
- 103.42
- Type
- book
- Language
- en
- Open access
- Licence
- cc-by
- Locations
- World Bank, Washington, DC eBooks (publishedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- The World Bank Open Knowledge Repository (World Bank) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Waste Management and Disposal › Municipal Solid Waste Management
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Waste Management and Disposal › Waste Management and Recycling
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Healthcare and Environmental Waste Management
- Keywords
- solid waste management, municipal solid waste, urbanization, waste generation, municipal services, environmental impact of waste, waste management costs
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