Risk characterisation and methods of improving practice for municipal waste management in disaster situations: A case study in Qom Province, Iran

Developing strategies to control environmental challenges and various aspects of health consequences of waste management is one of the major programs in metropolitan management. The main purpose of this study is to examine the level of preparedness, having a contingency plan and the emergency response ability to waste management in disaster situations. A descriptive study was designed in two phases: in the first phase of the study, composition, quantity and characteristics of municipal solid waste in the disaster were estimated, and by using DotMapper software, temporary waste sites for disaster situations (map waste) were determined. In the second phase of the study, the preliminary hazard analysis (PHA) to identify the initial events and risk analysis in the municipal waste management system was considered. Results show that more than 50% of the generated waste in the disaster is allocated to construction waste resulting from the destruction and more than 30% to recyclable items (metals, glass, plastic), and a very small part of about 1% of biodegradable waste was determined. Twenty points were designated as temporary sites for municipal waste in a disaster situation. Results of risk analysis in the disaster were described that for three events containing lack of temporary waste storage sites, lack of identification and determination of hazardous waste production centres and lack of waste management training programme in emergency situations were in the red range. Developing the necessary strategies to control environmental challenges and various aspects of health outcomes in waste management is one of the basic programmes in metropolitan management.