Research Projects

Rapid urbanization and economic growth in Indian cities have led to a surge in municipal solid waste (MSW) generation, resulting in environmental and health concerns. Globally, the waste sector contributes approximately 3–5% of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. While in India, MSW management is responsible for over 15% of methane emissions, primarily due to the open dumping of untreated biodegradable waste. This the sector lacks a scientific, data-driven strategy to overcome GHG emission from day-to-day MSW management activities. Gaps persist in emission quantification across the MSW management chain, emission forecasting under low-carbon pathways, and economic feasibility analysis. Moreover, the lack of city-level decision-support tools limits the ability of urban local bodies to plan and implement climate-responsive strategies aligned with India’s net-zero emissions target for 2070. This study aims to develop a Zero-Emission Waste Resource Management (Z-WARM) model, a simulation-based mathematical forecasting tool to assess and reduce GHG emissions from MSW management sector. The model incorporates emissions from four major segments of MSW management: collection and transportation, treatment technologies, recycling facilities and disposal method. The proposed research methodology is structured into three major stages. In the first stage, an assessment of the existing MSW system will be conducted to quantify the current GHG emission profile, guided by the Global Protocol for Community-Scale Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventories (GPC) for defining system boundaries, inventory design, and calculation methods. The second stage involves the development of a mathematical forecasting model, referred to as the Z-WARM model. The proposed model will estimate GHG emissions under various intervention scenarios (a) Business-as-Usual (BAU): It will be the base scenario and no change in the existing MSW system will be accounted, (b) Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC): Incorporates conventional mitigation actions aligned with India’s climate commitments, (c) Carbon Neutrality (CN): Introduces additional low-carbon measures including alternative fuel-based transport, and carbon offset strategies, (d) Net Zero Emission (NZE): Applies advanced interventions such as landfill gas recovery, renewable energy integration, and carbon offsetting to balance all residual emissions. This scenario will be based on sector-specific emission factors and activity data under scope 1, 2 and 3. Further, a techno-economic feasibility analysis to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the proposed scenarios, technologies, and policy measures identified in the earlier stages. The final stage will integrate mathematical models to Z-WARM software/web-based decision-support tool built using open-source platforms. The application will assist Urban Local Bodies and policymakers in evaluating intervention impacts, planning strategies, and linking MSWM with climate goals.