This thesis is a subtask of the research project “Green Production System”, which is jointly launched and run by Volvo/Volvo Technology, Haldex, Saab and All-Emballage J.E. AB as industrial party, and Mälardalen University as academic party. The whole project is dedicated to develop “green production system” to be a competitive mean to Swedish automotive and manufacturing industry through four work packages, which are “Wet preconditions and frames of a green production system”, “Visualization of environmental impact and added value”, “Development and implementation of tools for green control and management” and “Development of guidelines for environmental value improvement and cost decrease” respectively. And this thesis is an effort to package 2. Value stream mapping is assumed to be a potentially effective tool to be developed for visualizing environmental wastes produced by production processes. Thereby, the focus of this thesis is on the transformation of VSM into EVSM (Environmental Value Stream Mapping). By reviewing literature, the reduction of environmental wastes is additionally counted into a characteristic of lean production. Meanwhile, seven environmental wastes are identified and defined. The development of EVSM is on an absolutely great degree based on the identification and measurement of environmental wastes. Thus, waste measurement and production data collection are supposed to be the prerequisite of EVSM implementation. In order to verify the supposition, a test practice was carried out in CH Industry AB, which is a metal processor. After the practical study, CH’s incompetence of working on EVSM is analysed, and advice is proposed. At the end of thesis, analysis of EVSM is made in terms of its prerequisite, difference from VSM, pros and cons, etc. In addition, suggestions for further research are given.

An analysis of solid waste management was performed in Gaborone, Botswana to identify the quantity of different types of solid waste that are generated annually and the possible strategies for improved waste management. In order to achieve the objective of the project, present waste management practice in Gaborone was analysed and waste composition study was carried out in Gamodubu landfill, Gaborone. Waste from household, commercial, industrial and others (defence and institutional) stratums were selected for sampling. Different samples were taken and forwarded to sorting analysis. The waste was categorized into 10 categories and one of the categories (plastic) is further divided into 5 Subcategories. The output of the study results the quantity of solid waste generated in Gaborone, composition of solid waste categories from different stratums and its flow to the landfill and the quality of waste, annually. These findings helped in serving the importance and the need of better waste management system in order to improvise the potential for resource recovery under social considerations.

Waste management is a global environmental issue which concerns about a very significant problem in today’s world. There is a considerable amount of disposal of waste without proper segregation which has lead to both economic and environment sufferings. It is still practiced in many cities. There is a tremendous amount of loss in terms of environmental degradation, health hazards and economic descend due to direct disposal of waste. It is better to segregate the waste at the initial stages where it is generated, rather than going for a later option which is inconvenient and expensive. There has to be appropriate planning for proper waste management by means of analysis of the waste situation of the area. This paper would deal with, how Geographical Information System can be used as a decision support tool for planning waste management. A model is designed for the case study area in an Indian city for the purpose of planning waste management. The suggestions for amendments in the system through GIS based model would reduce the waste management workload to some extent and exhibit remedies for some of the SWM problems in the case study area. The waste management issues are considered to solve some of the present situation problems like proper allocation and relocation of waste bins, check for unsuitability and proximity convenience due to waste bin to the users, proposal of recyclable waste bins for the required areas and future suggestions. The model will be implemented on the Aurangabad city’s case study area data for the analysis and the results will suggest some modification in the existing system which is expected to reduce the waste management workload to a certain extent.

Since the onset of the Industrial Revolution, the increase in population, urbanization, cheap energies, and new technologies have bankrupted the environment into destruction. This chaos has created a society that transformed itself into one of continual wasting, where energy and resources are constantly dissipating. The myriad of new materials, the decline of the skilled craftsman, and cheap construction are part of the lexicon that defines the 21st century built landscape and ultimately contribute to current plight. Architecture will become an increasingly significant factor in determining the sustainability of the built environment, as defined in terms of life span, carbon footprint, and in our ability to confine this dissipated and inert energy into near infinite circulation. This thesis investigates methods to maximize the value of existing resources such as waste in the context of a much larger framework of systems—societal, socioeconomic, geopolitical, and environmental factors that concern the current discourse. An analysis of design methods and strategies into the ecology of waste, such as: cradle to cradle, secondary re-use of post consumer materials, embodied energy, life-cycle analysis tools, and design for deconstruction—aid in a series of themed hypotheses and experimental projects. These projects use waste and wasted landscape to seek answers to a series of questions that deal with the future predicament of our cities in order to shift perceptions and form contemporary methodologies that assist in calibrating potentials for future waste and waste-scapes.

Urban solid waste management (USWM) problems facing cities in the developed and developing world are well documented; however, progress in tackling them is very slow in the latter. There are still many communities, neighbourhoods, and local markets where garbage is not collected for a considerable length of time. Many of the affected houses are situated in poor neighbourhoods on the edges and core areas of cities. In order to secure the future of urban environments in the developing world from continuous or perpetual decay, it is important to study the role of social capital in urban solid waste management. Toward this end, a case study research was carried out in Ibadan, Nigeria. For the purpose of the study, social capital was defined as the attributes of social organization, such as trust, cultural norms and social networks by which communities facilitate action. Emerging research suggests that social capital might have an important role to play in effective community-based urban solid waste management initiatives. Empirical evidence suggests that communities with a high level of social capital are in better shape to organize a community-based urban solid waste management project, if the other factors remain supportive. This dissertation seeks to place the concept of social capital in the practice of urban solid waste management, especially at the community level as well as on a wider philosophical and policy levels. The intention here is to advance the understanding of social capital both in relation to its nature as a quality of community life and in terms of its significance as an instrument in the hands of the agents of change. Therefore, this research examines the degree to which social capital and community-based organizations are important in the overall functioning of urban solid waste management at the community level in Ibadan, Nigeria. The main objective of the research was to explore the role of social capital in community-based urban solid waste management and to understand why people participate in voluntary associations for the provision of common goods in Ibadan, Nigeria. This objective is pursued in three specific dimensions: (i) to understand and document the feature of the current solid waste management system in Ibadan; (ii) to explore the extent to which social capital affects community-based urban solid waste management success; (iii) to identify other elements that could facilitate successful urban solid waste management at the community and institutional levels. This study adopts both quantitative and qualitative approaches using multiple data gathering techniques (e.g.) semi-structured face-to-face interviews, direct field observation, focus group, and information sections; conversations with community leaders, key informants, government officials and waste generators to gather different but relevant information and data. The secondary data includes data on waste management from Oyo State Solid Waste Management Authority (OSSWMA) and valuation data from the office of Sustainable Ibadan Project (SIP). The quantitative section of the research encompasses 66 core questions on Social Capital via Integrated Questionnaire. The structured questionnaire measures various elements of social capital using four proxies. The data set covered 7 communities and 385 households and the basic unit of analysis was the neighbourhood. Major findings from the study include: (i) No evidence suggesting that homogeneity is a virtue for collective action in urban solid waste management at the community level nor is there evidence suggesting that homogeneity increases civic engagement in the communities studied. (ii) Empirical evidence suggests that to a great extent, social capital can influence the success of community-based urban solid waste management initiatives. However, social networks among private and professional associations, the density and diversity of social network differ within and between communities. (iii) Empirical field observation results show that social capital had positive influence on the success of community-based urban solid waste management in Bodija, Ayeye, and communities. (iv)The study results indicate that the residents of Agbowo, NTC Road, Foko, and Sasa communities failed to establish community-based USWM initiatives for a range of reasons. Some of the reasons include the paucity of face-to-face interactions among households; resident’s cultural and behavioural differences, lack of charismatic leadership and lack of cooperation among community members. (v) The study results and direct field observations also suggest that there is high-level of social capital among individuals involved in urban solid waste management at the community level in the city of Ibadan. (vi) Field information/observations from Ayeye, Bodija, and Alesinloye communities reveal that social networks and interpersonal relationships were constructed along the line of local identity among the residents. (vii) Empirical findings suggest that the presence of a network of ties based on acquaintances, business partnerships, religious groups, and people from the same region, living in the same community, serve as a foundation for building social relations. The study concluded that Putnam’s generalization and conceptualization of social capital is not completely or equally applicable to different social and political environments. Therefore, it needs to be contextualized according to local problems in order to obtain the gains. The research also reveals that social capital alone is not enough to form community-based urban solid waste management projects in Ibadan, Nigeria. It works well with other elements such as collaborative, incremental planning and community capacity building.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 167-180). Also available online.

Thesis (Honors)--University of South Florida, 2008. / Title from cover. "April 24, 2008." Includes bibliographical references (p. 41).

Thesis (M.A.)--California State University, Chico. / Includes abstract. "Located in the Chico Digital Repository." Includes bibliographical references (p. 16-17).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 167-180). Also available in print.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Auburn University, 2009. / Abstract. Includes bibliographic references (p.140-163).