Combined effects of conditional cash transfer program and environmental health interventions on diarrhea and malnutrition morbidity in children less than five years of age in Brazil, 2006-2016.

INTRODUCTION: Governmental measures aiming at social protection, with components of disease control, have potential positive impacts in the nutritional and health outcomes of the beneficiaries. The concomitant presence of these measures with environmental sanitation interventions may increase their positive effect. The context of simultaneous improvement of social protection and environmental sanitation is found in Brazil since 2007 and an assessment of the combined effects of both programs has not been performed so far. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether interaction effects between improvement of access to water, sanitation and solid waste collection with the Bolsa Família Program [PBF] were related to better responses in the reduction of morbidity due to diarrhea and malnutrition in children less than five years of age, acknowledging the positive results of these improved conditions and the PBF separately in coping with these diseases. METHODS: Descriptive and inferential analyses were performed through Generalized Linear Models of the Negative Binomial type of fixed effects, with and without addition of zeros. Interaction models were inserted in order to evaluate the outcomes when the two public policies of interest in the current study were present simultaneously in the municipalities. RESULTS: Interaction with negative effect when a concomitantly high municipal coverage of the Bolsa Família Program and adequate access to sanitation and solid waste collection were present. In contrast, regardless of municipal coverage by the PBF, the simultaneous presence of water and sanitation (0.028% / 0.019%); water and solid waste collection (0.033% / 0.014%); sanitation and solid waste collection (0.018% / 0.021%), all resulted in a positive effect, with a decrease in the average morbidity rates for both diseases. CONCLUSION: Investments aimed at universalizing water, sanitation and solid waste collection services should be priorities, aiming at reducing the incidence of morbidity due to malnutrition and diarrhea and preventing deaths from these poverty-related diseases.

Organic Waste Buyback as a Viable Method to Enhance Sustainable Municipal Solid Waste Management in Developing Countries.

Many developing countries have inadequate Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) management systems due to lack of not only the awareness, technologies, finances, but also a proper governance that is able to enforce and monitor the regulations. Not all the solutions practiced by and in developed countries fit to the developing country contexts. The local conditions and limitations must always be taken into account when proposing waste management options for developing countries. The excessively high organic waste fraction in MSW and relatively inexpensive labor markets available in developing countries are two of the strengths that have not yet been utilized fully. This manuscript is an attempt to point out the benefits we receive from the above two strengths if we establish organic waste buyback programs. This can only become successful if we find solutions to: (1) collect source-separated organic waste, and then (2) find stable markets for the products made from organic waste. Compost or biogas could be the best bet developing countries can consider as products. However, there must be some policy interventions to support buyback programs at the waste collection stage as well as at the product marketing stage. Implementation of such organic waste buyback centers that can offer some incentives can indirectly motivate residents to do source separation. This will in turn also help promote more recycling, as any waste bin that has no organics in it is much easier for anyone (e.g., waste pickers) to look for other recyclables. Developing country settings such as the Green Container composting program in Cajicá, Colombia, and buyback centers in South Africa that are presented later in the manuscript are thought to be the places where the concept can be implemented with little effort. The environment, economy, and society are considered to be the three dimensions (or pillars) of sustainability. Interestingly, the organic waste buyback centers solution has positive implications on all three aspects of sustainability. Thus, it also supports the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations (UN), by making specific contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) such as zero hunger (SDG 2), affordable and clean energy (SDG 7), climate action (SDG 13), clean water and sanitation (SDG 6), and sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11).

E-waste management and sustainability: a case study in Brazil.

The advancement of technology and development of new electronic and electrical equipment with a reduced life cycle has increased the need for the disposal of them (called Waste of Electric and Electronic Equipment or simply e-waste) due to defects presented during use, replacement of obsolete equipment, and ease of acquisition of new equipment. There is a lack of consumer awareness regarding the use, handling storage, and disposal of this equipment. In Brazil, the disposal of post-consumer waste is regulated by the National Solid Waste Policy, established by Law No. 12305 and regulated on the 23rd December 2010. Under this legislation, manufacturers and importers are required to perform a project for the Reverse Logistics of e-waste, though its implementation is not well defined. This work focuses on the verification of the sustainability of reverse logistics suggested by the legislation and the mandatory points, evaluating its costs and the possible financial gain with recycling of the waste. The management of reverse logistics and recycling of waste electrical and electronic equipment, or simply recycling of e-waste, as suggested by the government, will be the responsibility of the managing organization to be formed by the manufacturers/importers in Brazil.

Assessment of biogas production in Argentina from co-digestion of sludge and municipal solid waste.

In Argentina, there is an important potential to utilize organic waste to generate bioenergy. This work analyzes the environmental impacts and the energetic and economic requirements of the biogas produced by digesting the sewage sludge (SS) produced in a wastewater treatment plant in a medium city in Argentina. The SS is co-digested with the organic fraction of municipal solid waste (OFMSW), and the basis of this study is the life cycle assessment (LCA). The LCA is performed according to ISO 14040-44 using the SimaPro simulator. First, the transport of the raw materials to the biogas plant was defined. Then, the co-digestion and the biogas treatment for final use were evaluated. The co-digestion was improved with glycerol, and the generation of biogas was estimated using the GPS-X software. Two alternatives for the end use of biogas were considered: combined heat and power (CHP) and biomethane generation. For the first, H2S and water vapor were removed from the raw biogas stream, and for the second, also CO2 was removed. The H2S removal process was simulated in the SuperPro software by anaerobic biofiltration. The same software was used to simulate the removal of CO2 absorption-desorption with water as solvent. Finally, the environmental impacts related to the end use of biogas (CHP and biomethane) were evaluated. The environmental, energetic and economic analyses showed that the co-digestion of SS and OFMSW has great potential for reducing the environmental impacts and increasing the economic and energetic value of the substances via the production of biomethane, electricity and, potentially, fertilizer.

Cow, sheep and llama manure at psychrophilic anaerobic co-digestion with low cost tubular digesters in cold climate and high altitude.

The aim of this research is to evaluate the co-digestion of cow and llama manure combined with sheep manure, in psychrophilic conditions and real field low cost tubular digesters adapted to cold climate. Four digesters were monitored in cold climate conditions; one fed with cow manure, a second one with llama manure, the third one with co-digestion of cow-sheep manure and the fourth one was fed with llama-sheep manure. The slurry had a mean temperature of 16.6 °C, the organic load rate was 0.44 kgvs m(-3) d(-1) and the hydraulic retention time was 80 days. After one hundred days biogas production was stable, as was the methane content and the pH of the effluent. The co-digestion of cow-sheep manure results in a biogas production increase of 100% compared to the mono-digestion of cow manure, while co-digestion of llama-sheep manure results in a decrease of 50% in biogas production with respect to mono-digestion of llama manure.

Developing a common framework for integrated solid waste management advances in Managua, Nicaragua.

This article describes the municipal solid waste management system in Managua, Nicaragua. It updates an initial profile developed by the authors for the 2010 UN-HABITAT publication Solid Waste Management in the World's Cities and applies the methodology developed in that publication. In recent years, the municipality of Managua has been the beneficiary of a range of international cooperation projects aimed at improving municipal solid waste management in the city. The article describes how these technical assistance and infrastructure investments have changed the municipal solid waste management panorama in the city and analyses the sustainability of these changes. The article concludes that by working closely with the municipal government, the UN-HABITAT project Strengthening Capacities for Solid Waste Management in Managua was able to unite these separate efforts and situate them within a strategic framework to guide the evolution of the municipal solid waste management system in the forthcoming years. The creation of this multi-stakeholder platform allowed for the implementation of joint activities and ensured coherence in the products generated by the different projects. This approach could be replicated in other cities and in other sectors with similar effect. Developing a long term vision was essential for the advancement of municipal solid waste management in the city. Nevertheless, plan implementation may still be undermined by the pressures of the short term municipal administrative government, which emphasize operational over strategic investment.

The challenges for solid waste management in accordance with Agenda 21: a Brazilian case review.

This paper aims to evaluate the suitability of the Brazilian solid waste policy (BSWP) with global Agenda 21 and the challenges of implementing the BSWP in municipalities. For this, a review of the principles that guided the creation of this policy was performed to demonstrate that international pressures were important in determining its effectiveness. The contradictory relationship between the satisfactory legal framework that established the Brazilian waste management policy and its weakened implementation in the municipalities is also examined . To illustrate the difficulties faced at the local level, a case study involving municipalities that compose the state of Espírito Santowe was undertaken. In this state, the municipalities signed terms of environmental commitment with supervisory agencies who undertook, within a pre-established schedule, to implement a set of actions to shape the proper management of solid waste, adapted to the requirements of national policy and the guidelines of Agenda 21. Finally, the various difficulties in meeting the requirements are discussed. It is necessary and urgent that Brazil finds a way to coordinate the mechanisms of an innovative and well formulated legal instrument to ensure the successful implementation of solid waste management at the local level to achieve the environmental, economic and social objectives.

Who owns urban waste? Appropriation conflicts in emerging countries.

Managing solid waste in developing cities is not an easy task and many public policies have failed to bring the expected results. It is here argued that comprehending the solid waste handling in the South implies reconsidering the proper definition of waste. Where does the product end and where does rubbish begin? The answer to this question is far from being obvious. Solid waste appears as a blurred concept. Such a thorny issue is all the more relevant today, as municipal solid waste management approaches in the developing world are being reformulated: dumping sites are banned, sanitary landfills are imposed, and separate collection is being introduced. The current sector transformations are here analysed through a novel theoretical analysis combined with an original qualitative and quantitative empirical work. Through two case-studies of one-million inhabitant cities from emerging countries, it is shown that if appropriation conflicts arise that is because the urban solid waste deposit in Southern countries can be defined as an impure public good. This issue does not only involve private service operators and informal wastepickers; several other actors covet the urban solid waste deposit's cream, that is, recyclable items. In emerging countries, huge industrial groups are starting to target domestic recyclable waste as an alternative for raw materials, which costs are increasing ever more.

Analysis of potential for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases in municipal solid waste in Brazil, in the state and city of Rio de Janeiro.

This paper examines potential changes in solid waste policies for the reduction in GHG for the country of Brazil and one of its major states and cities, Rio de Janeiro, from 2005 to 2030. To examine these policy options, trends in solid waste quantities and associated GHG emissions are derived. Three alternative policy scenarios are evaluated in terms of effectiveness, technology, and economics and conclusions posited regarding optimal strategies for Brazil to implement. These scenarios are been building on the guidelines for national inventories of GHG emissions (IPCC, 2006) and adapted to Brazilian states and municipalities' boundaries. Based on the results, it is possible to say that the potential revenue from products of solid waste management is more than sufficient to transform the current scenario in this country into one of financial and environmental gains, where the negative impacts of climate change have created a huge opportunity to expand infrastructure for waste management.

Constrained recycling: a framework to reduce landfilling in developing countries.

This article presents a model that integrates three branches of research: (i) economics of solid waste that assesses consumer's willingness to recycle and to pay for disposal; (ii) economics of solid waste that compares private and social costs of final disposal and recycling; and (iii) theories on personal attitudes and social influence. The model identifies two arenas where decisions are made: upstream arena, where residents are decision-makers, and downstream arena, where municipal authorities are decision-makers, and graphically proposes interactions between disposal and recycling, as well as the concept of 'constrained recycling' (an alternative to optimal recycling) to guide policy design. It finally concludes that formative instruments, such as environmental education and benchmarks, should be combined with economic instruments, such as subsidies, to move constraints on source separation and recycling in the context of developing countries.

Putting solid household waste to sustainable use: a case study in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The management of solid residues has, in recent decades, been a source of concern for public administrators the world over. Experiments in the sustainable use of such residues are highly relevant in social and environmental terms, stimulating widespread interest and debate, with considerable research going into sustainability projects. In many areas, however, adequate public funding for sustainable-use projects is hard to come by. One of the major reasons for this is that public authorities, particularly in times of financial constraints, are reluctant to invest in undertakings in which the economic returns are difficult to quantify. Official scrutiny of the expenditures of public authorities is also normally heavily influenced by cost-benefit analyses. The specific objective of this article is to show that putting solid domestic residue (household solid waste) to sustainable use is capable of generating economic returns, as well as environmental benefits for society as a whole. These economic returns can be set out in financial statements, which may, in turn, be used to justify expenditures by public authorities on sustainable-use projects and as a basis for further investment in such incentives. We drew on the findings of existing research into sustainable use, undertaken by the Municipal Urban Cleaning Company in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to establish a conceptual framework for setting out the economic results of the collection of household solid waste.

A method for optimizing waste collection using mathematical programming: a Buenos Aires case study.

A method is proposed that uses operations research techniques to optimize the routes of waste collection vehicles servicing dumpster or skip-type containers. The waste collection problem is reduced to the classic travelling salesman problem, which is then solved using the Concorde solver program. A case study applying the method to the collection system in the southern zone of Buenos Aires is also presented. In addition to the typical minimum distance criterion, the optimization problem incorporates the objective of reducing vehicle wear and tear as measured by the physics concept of mechanical work. The solution approach, employing graph theory and mathematical programming tools, is fully described and the data correction process is also discussed. The application of the proposed method minimized the distance travelled by each collection vehicle in the areas studied, with actual reductions ranging from 10 to 40% of the existing routes. The shortened distances led in turn to substantial decreases in work done and therefore in vehicle wear and tear. Extrapolation of the results to the entire southern zone of Buenos Aires indicates potential savings for the civic authorities of more than US $200,000 per year in addition to the qualitative impacts of less traffic disruption, less vehicle driver fatigue and less pollution.

A model for estimation of potential generation of waste electrical and electronic equipment in Brazil.

Sales of electrical and electronic equipment are increasing dramatically in developing countries. Usually, there are no reliable data about quantities of the waste generated. A new law for solid waste management was enacted in Brazil in 2010, and the infrastructure to treat this waste must be planned, considering the volumes of the different types of electrical and electronic equipment generated. This paper reviews the literature regarding estimation of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), focusing on developing countries, particularly in Latin America. It briefly describes the current WEEE system in Brazil and presents an updated estimate of generation of WEEE. Considering the limited available data in Brazil, a model for WEEE generation estimation is proposed in which different methods are used for mature and non-mature market products. The results showed that the most important variable is the equipment lifetime, which requires a thorough understanding of consumer behavior to estimate. Since Brazil is a rapidly expanding market, the "boom" in waste generation is still to come. In the near future, better data will provide more reliable estimation of waste generation and a clearer interpretation of the lifetime variable throughout the years.

Recycling policies and programmes for PET drink bottles in Mexico.

Transition and emerging economies confront a steadily increasing generation of municipal solid waste in the form of disposable packaging. The following article reports the situation of soft drink bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in Mexico. Since 2002 schemes following the European Green Dot principle have been partly implemented to place responsibility on the producer, mainly soft drink bottlers. Private stakeholders are responsible for national recovery activities. Meanwhile Government presence to promote recovery is absent. Of post-consumer PET 75% is exported, and the newly created bottle-to-bottle (BTB) PET industry is confronted with bottlenecks in their post-consumer PET supply.

Evaluating the Mexican Federal District's integrated solid waste management programme.

Generation of solid waste is a problem of great environmental significance in the Mexican Federal District. With an estimated daily generation of 12 500 tons, waste management is a priority for the district government. Integrated waste management programmes have been implemented in the Mexican Federal District in the past. They have failed. This research has examined the most recent initiative in an effort to discover the causes of failure, using a case study approach. In addition to identifying barriers to and opportunities for implementation of an effective integrated waste management system in the Federal District, this research recommends options for a newly proposed waste management system with the aim of achieving the objectives desired by the government, while aiding in the pursuit of sustainable development.

Impacts of the globalized economy on the environment: the tanning industry in the Vale do Rio dos Sinos / Impactos da economia globalizada no meio ambiente: as indústrias curtidoras no Vale do Rio dos Sinos

This case study analysed the impact of the global economy on the environment of the Vale do Rio do Sinos region in southern Brazil. Interviews and questionnaires were used to collect data from social, cultural, economic and political agents in this region, and documents about the tanning industry were reviewed and analysed. Global perspectives and local conditions were brought together to understand the causes and consequences of social, political and economic structures and to evaluate the intrinsic association of the tanning industry with the social, historical and cultural development of the Vale do Rio dos Sinos. The behaviour of the local community, where individuals believe that progress is primordially based on industrial development and go to any lengths to achieve it, was also studied. The analysis of industries that have a high contamination potential revealed that dirty industries moved from central to peripheral countries up to the 1980s, but movement is currently internal and occurs between states in Brazil due to several types of incentives.

Este trabalho indaga os impactos da economia global para o meio ambiente na região do vale do rio dos Sinos, Brasil. É um estudo de caso que se apoiou em 32 entrevistas; 307 questionários, aplicados aos atores socioculturais, econômicos e políticos; além de observação e documentos, relacionados à indústria curtidora. A proposta consiste em aproximar o global ao local, percebendo as causas e consequências da estrutura social, política e econômica. Em relação à indústria de curtumes, veremos que a mesma está intrínseca no processo de formação sócio-histórico e cultural da comunidade do vale do rio dos Sinos. Por outro lado, essa sociedade acredita que o progresso tem sua base no desenvolvimento industrial, não medindo esforços para alcançá-lo. Perceberemos, também, um movimento de migração de indústrias com alto potencial de contaminação. Os dados apontam que, até a década de 80, o que víamos dos países de centro (principalmente Europa) deslocar suas indústrias sujas para os países de periferia; hoje, por muitos incentivos de ordens diversas, assinala-se essa migração internamente entre os estados do Brasil.

Impacts of the globalized economy on the environment: the tanning industry in the Vale do Rio dos Sinos.

This case study analysed the impact of the global economy on the environment of the Vale do Rio do Sinos region in southern Brazil. Interviews and questionnaires were used to collect data from social, cultural, economic and political agents in this region, and documents about the tanning industry were reviewed and analysed. Global perspectives and local conditions were brought together to understand the causes and consequences of social, political and economic structures and to evaluate the intrinsic association of the tanning industry with the social, historical and cultural development of the Vale do Rio dos Sinos. The behaviour of the local community, where individuals believe that progress is primordially based on industrial development and go to any lengths to achieve it, was also studied. The analysis of industries that have a high contamination potential revealed that dirty industries moved from central to peripheral countries up to the 1980s, but movement is currently internal and occurs between states in Brazil due to several types of incentives.

Urban solid waste collection system using mathematical modelling and tools of geographic information systems.

A poorly designed urban solid waste collection system has an enormous impact on labour, operational and transport costs, and on society in general due to road contamination and negative effects on public health and the environment. This study proposes a methodology for designing an urban solid waste collection system. This methodology uses combinatorial optimisation and integer programing, and GIS tools to minimise collection time, and operational and transport costs while enhancing the current solid waste collection system. This methodology establishes feasible collection routes, determines an adequate vehicle fleet size and presents a comparative cost and sensitivity analysis of the results. The implementation of this methodology in a study case of a zone in Santiago yields significant cost savings in the total collection system.

Condominium waste management by private initiative: a report of a 10-year project in Brazil.

The evolution of domestic waste management practices in an urban residential condominium complex in Brazil is reported. A sustained effort over 10 years has created a benchmark for landfill diversion by private initiative. The project was initiated in 1998 when the prevailing practice was to tip all waste at the landfill. In the presently attained situation, which is available for imitation elsewhere, 67% of all domestic waste produced in the complex is recycled without cost to the municipal administration. Instead of separating the inert recyclables, the effort was turned to separating the biodegradable material. The management programme derived from waste analyses and the work with people evolved into a two-stage source-separation procedure combined with the participation of handpicked reverse logistics operators. City crews now take only 33% of all waste to the landfill. Although this description is strictly valid only for Brazil, the story in itself might be of wider interest.

Report: the current situation of sanitary landfills in Brazil and the importance of the application of economic models.

We present the development stage of the sanitary landfills in Brazil in the context of urban solid residue management, demonstrating the necessity and importance of the employment of economic models. In the article, a cost estimate model is proposed as the basis for studies to be applied by sector management, including the city council, companies, consultants and engineers, contributing to the choice of new areas, public bids, municipal consortia and private public partnerships.