From Selective Collection to Solid Recovery Fuel and 50% recovery achievement: two Italian case studies

Developments in the management of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) has followed a very complex evolution in Europe, where, gradually, the principle that, in addition to minimiz-ing the production of waste, the necessity to maximize its recovery has been estab-lished. This leads to consider the waste as a potential resource, with both environmental and economic benefits. However, considering the different waste management systems in EU, the results obtained are very different because they are affected by different as-pects (socio-economic structure, traditions, conformation of the territory, critical envi-ronmental issues, etc). The present study took into account the situation in two devel-oped and rich areas located in the Northern Italy, comparing the different approaches with the aim at improving the waste management by optimizing the recovery of waste, especially from an energy point of view, and in particular, realizing solid recovery fuel (SRF) starting from the residual municipal solid waste (RMSW).