Planning for sustainable municipal solid waste management
Practical Action
There is evidence that ignoring the needs and activities of the informal sector can compromise
the effectiveness of any improvements to solid waste management. In some instances there is
scope for involving (as opposed to displacing) informal sector workers into more sanitary and
efficient systems of waste management. In doing so, there is also an opportunity to improve the
welfare, conditions, safety, dignity and livelihood-security of these workers, which can make a
positive contribution to achieving some of the millennium development goals.
Recycling
Why is planning this important? Recycling initiatives can have a beneficial environmental
impact, reduce the volume of waste to be managed, and support important livelihoods for poor
men and women in cities. It is vital to fully understand the priorities of existing recyclers in
order to ensure sustainability both of recycling and other SWM activities.
Many cities have active recycling sectors. This is predominantly an informal-sector activity, and
can provide employment for tens of thousands of urban poor in a single city (photograph 2).
Where the sector is particularly well developed, influential businessmen may have vested
interests in retaining control. Efforts of SWM planners may be best directed at regulation and
support: for example ensuring recycling workers are properly protected from health and safety
risks, and that businesses access recyclable materials as close to the point of generation as
possible (e.g. collected from households, not picked from a disposal site).
Photo 2: Recyclable materials dealer in Pakistan (Jonathan Rouse).
Organic waste (e.g. vegetable peelings, garden clippings etc.) is one of the most significant
components of solid waste. This can be composted: a form of recycling which produces a useful
soil conditioner (see 'Organic waste composting' technical brief).
Transfer points
Why is planning this important? With good planning, transfer points can be relatively attractive,
clean and efficient facilities. Careful consultation can ensure their location and function is well
suited to the local environment and users.
One of the most visible aspects of SWM is the transfer point, providing an interface between
primary and secondary collection. These are often poorly designed, involving double handling of
waste (once to unload tricycles, again to reload trucks) and unsanitary conditions where transfer
points are not properly cleaned and used as public toilets.
Key planning questions for improving transfer include:
How much space is available? How is waste deposited at present (e.g. by hand, tipped
from a tricycle)?
What is acceptable to householders in terms of location, visual impact, method of
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