Environmental impact analysis of municipal solid waste incineration in African countries

Globally, proper management of solid waste has been a massive issue. Incineration is popularly used in waste treatment worldwide due to its ability to minimize waste volume and generate electricity. Despite its advantages, incineration of waste can still generate large amounts of flue gas, which can be harmful if not handled properly. Therefore, the present study seeks to examine the environmental consequences of incineration in Africa. The study used the most accurate secondary data on the municipal solid waste incineration in 56 African countries from literature for the analysis. Due to data availability, the years 2012 and 2025 are considered for the study. The environmental analysis was based on global warming, acidification, and dioxin emission potentials. The emission of greenhouse gases from the incineration plant was estimated based on the method from the 2006 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories. The acid gases and dioxins emissions were evaluated based on the United States Environmental Protection Agency “Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors” (Acidification Potential-42). Key findings show that the global warming potential of Seychelles is expected to decline from 200.10 kton CO₂eq to 196.18 kton CO₂eq in 2025, while that of Saint Helena will be constant at 7.85 kton CO₂eq. The study found that except for Seychelles and Saint Helena, the global warming potential of incineration projects in all the countries is expected to increase in 2025 compared to 2012. It was realized that the acidification potential of the project in 2012 ranges from 740.56 kg SO₂eq to 4,297,839.96 kg SO₂eq, and that of 2025 is expected to be from 740.56 kg SO₂eq to 9,449,175.32 kg SO₂eq. The results further indicate that South Africa, Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, and Nigeria have higher dioxin emission potential in 2012 and 2025 compared to other countries in this study. This study will guide decision-making on the environmental sustainability of waste-to-energy incineration projects in Africa.