Evaluation and analysis of municipal solid wastes in Tehran, Iran

Waste management for municipal solid waste is considered a public health services, providing citizens with a system of disposing of their waste in an environmentally sound and economically feasible way. The amount and composition of waste generated comprise the basic information needed for the planning, operation and optimization of waste management systems. In this study, paper and plastic quantity changes in the MSW (municipal solid waste) of the region 10 of Tehran city were evaluated. This study was conducted in 6 months, in the summer and autumn seasons, at the region 10 of Tehran city. In this study, paper and plastic were segregated and data were analyzed by SPSS software. The paper parameter of solid wastes was consisted of folder paper, cardboard and used newspaper. The plastic parameter of solid wastes was consisted of plastic materials, plastic house shoes, plastic sack, nylon sack, linoleum, radiology photograph and PET. Samples were collected and weighed daily. The total quantity of paper and plastic portion of this region solid waste were 203,930 Kg and 180,101 Kg, respectively. The percentage of paper and plastic portion of this region solid waste also were 6.82% and 6.03%, respectively. The analyses showed a significant difference between these parameters and season, some months and days (P-value < 0.05). So, because of the results of this study and economical issues, the paper and plastic segregation from generated source point and recycling them are important.