Municipal Solid Waste Management Regulation, Circularity and Urban Sustainability

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue will explore the challenges, strategies, and innovations in municipal solid waste (MSW) management within the context of circular and sustainable cities. Globally, cities generate over 2 billion tonnes of MSW each year, a figure expected to rise by nearly 70% by 2050. Managing this growing waste stream is crucial for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, especially SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production). Effective MSW management is vital for protecting the environment, ensuring public health, and maintaining functional and livable urban spaces.

Since the mid-1980s, cities have revamped waste management systems to meet recycling targets and improve efficiency through technological innovation, new procurement models, and incentive schemes. The integration of digital tools—such as IoT sensors, artificial intelligence, and big data—has enabled the development of smarter and more resource-efficient systems.

Regulation plays a key role in promoting sustainable waste practices. Policy instruments like extended producer responsibility, landfill levies, pay-as-you-throw schemes, and plastic bans have been implemented in various countries, supported by initiatives such as the EU’s Circular Economy Action Plan and China’s waste-sorting policies. However, regulatory outcomes often vary, underscoring the need for ongoing assessment and refinement.

This Special Issue aims to enhance our understanding of how regulatory, technical, economic, and social factors interact in urban waste systems. We welcome interdisciplinary contributions that explore how regulations can either promote or hinder sustainability, drawing on various geographical contexts and research methods.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Cost analysis and economic efficiency of urban waste management;
• Methods and metrics to measure the performance of waste management services;
• Urban waste collection, segregation, transport, and treatment practices;
• Waste reduction, prevention, and circular economy approaches;
• Best practices for reuse, recycling, and material recovery;
• Organic waste management, composting, and urban food waste strategies;
• Education, training, and citizen engagement strategies supporting waste management policies;
• Municipal waste-to-energy technologies and performance assessment;
• Digitalization and smart waste management systems (IoT, AI, big data applications);
• Regulatory frameworks, compliance, and policy instruments for MSW management;
• Regulatory impact assessment, and the effectiveness of existing policies;
• Comparative analysis of governance models (public, private, public–private partnerships);
• Transparency, traceability, and accountability in the waste management chain;
• Barriers, challenges, and innovative approaches to overcome regulatory and operational obstacles;
• Links between MSW regulation and broader environmental or climate policies;
• Environmental justice, equity, and social dimensions of waste management;
• Waste management in emergency situations and post-pandemic contexts;
• Modeling and methodologies to analyze waste management systems and regulatory tools.

This Special Issue will contribute to the existing literature on waste management, systems engineering, environmental economics, materials science, policy analysis, and sustainability studies. It will provide a platform for innovative approaches, policy instruments, and best practices that support the transition toward circular and sustainable urban waste management.

Prof. Dr. Corrado lo Storto
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• municipal solid waste (MSW)
• recycling and reuse
• waste collection and treatment
• waste reduction and prevention
• circular economy
• sustainable cities
• regulatory frameworks
• smart waste management
• performance metrics in waste management
• public engagement and incentives