Mitigation of CO2e Emissions from the Municipal Solid Waste Sector in the Kingdom of Bahrain

Abstract

Mitigating climate change to limit the global temperature increase (relative to pre-industrial temperatures) to 2 °C is receiving considerable attention around the world. Here, historical and future carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions from municipal solid waste (MSW) in Bahrain were calculated using the revised Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 1996 and IPCC 2006 methods. The extent to which waste-to-energy (WtE) technologies can contribute to climate change mitigation was assessed by performing a multicriteria analysis. The results indicated that CO2e emissions from MSW in Bahrain have been increasing since the Askar landfill was constructed in 1986. Emission recalculations indicated that CO2e emissions from MSW contribute 6.2% of total emissions in Bahrain rather than the 11.6% reported in the second national communication. Methane emissions from MSW in 2030 are predicted to be 22–63 Gg. The WtE technologies anaerobic digestion and landfill gas recovery gave the best and gasification the worst multicriteria analysis model results. A database of WtE plants around the world should be compiled to allow decisions around the world to be based on best practices. The potential for maximizing energy recovery and decreasing costs needs to be investigated to allow WtE plants to compete better with renewable and nonrenewable energy sources.