Waste management and sustainable development

Project description

Present waste flows constitute an extensive problem regarding their amount as well as their substantial risk. The current knowledge concerning amount and composition of wastes and the environmental, economic and social effects connected with waste treatment measures is not sufficient for assessing the waste management regarding aspects of sustainability and for developing recommendations for a more sustainable waste management.

Aim of the project is on one hand to analyse waste streams in Germany resulting from production and consumption processes in total and regarding their composition. On the other hand waste management options are to be analysed. Both, waste flows as well as waste management options will then be assessed regarding sustainable development criteria.

Based on the integrative sustainability concept which was developed within the framework of the HGF-project "Global Sustainable Development - Perspectives for Germany" guidelines shall be worked out for a waste management according to sustainability principles and exemplified by suitable indicators.

Starting point of the analyses is a classification of the total societal consumption in so called "activity fields" following the fields of societal needs (e.g. mobility and transportation, housing and construction). Hereby, the specific waste amounts and waste compositions of each activity field will be analysed.

For selected activity fields relevant wastes (according to amount and risk potential) and consumption patterns which have led to the generation of these wastes will be identified. Material flow analyses for determining the wastes regarding amount and type over the whole life cycle (extraction of raw materials; production, use and disposal of products) will be used as a methodological instrument among others. For connecting waste types with corresponding branches of trade or activity fields respectively input-output-analyses provide a capable tool.

For assessing material flows and waste management options, ecological aspects as well as economic (costs), social (jobs, health) and institutional aspects (juridical framework conditions, decision processes) will be taken into consideration.

Furthermore, the effects of strategic recommendations for a future waste management concerning the national economy shall be analysed by means of scenario calculations and assessed considering sustainability aspects. Especially, for the development of strategic recommendations, important actors such as industry, trade, private/municipal waste disposal authorities, public authorities and consumers will be integrated into the discussion.

Publications


2005
Conference Papers
Hartlieb, N.; Bräutigam, K. R.; Achternbosch, M.; Kupsch, C.; Sardemann, G.
Use of material flow analysis for assessing the solid waste management in Germany regarding sustainable solutions
2005. Tiezzi, E. [Hrsg.] Ecosystems and Sustainable Development V : Proc.of the Internat.Conf., Cadiz, E, May 3-5, 2005 Southampton : WIT Press, 2005 (Advances in Ecological Sciences ; 22), 723–33 
Presentations
Hartlieb, N.; Bräutigam, K. R.; Achternbosch, M.; Kupsch, C.; Sardemann, G.
Use of material flow analysis for assessing the solid waste management in Germany regarding sustainable solutions
2005. Tiezzi, E. [Hrsg.] Ecosystems and Sustainable Development V : Proc.of the Internat.Conf., Cadiz, E, May 3-5, 2005 Southampton : WIT Press, 2005 (Advances in Ecological Sciences ; 22) 
Hartlieb, N.; Bräutigam, K. R.; Achternbosch, M.; Kupsch, C.; Sardemann, G.
Use of material flow analysis for assessing the management of cadmium containing solid waste in Germany
2005. 12th SETAC Europe LCA Case Studies Symp., Bologna, I, January 10-11, 2005 

Contact

Dipl.-Met. Gerhard Sardemann
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
Institute for Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis (ITAS)
P.O. Box 3640
76021 Karlsruhe
Germany