Localización de una estación de transferencia de residuos sólidos para el cantón Cuenca

Abstract

Solid Waste Management in a city is directly related to the size of the service area. Thus, when the service area grows, it is required to optimize the processes related to transport for final disposal. At times, establishing a Transfer Station helps to achieve this objective, by contributing to the optimization of service frequencies, to the reduction of energy consumption and the efficiency of management. According to the evidence reported by the scientific literature, stablishing Transfer Stations imply savings in transportation costs, in relation to the distance with the landfills. This research work addresses the problem of locating a Transfer Station for the management of solid waste in Cuenca. Firstly, by means of an analysis of the management and handling of waste under operational parameters to evaluate different locations and, from this point, it defines an optimal location for this facility, in order to contribute to the sustainability of public management. The study is proposed under the consideration that, at present time, the Municipal landfill is located at a distance of 25 km from the city center. The cost for the collection and transportation of solid waste represents an annual cost of 6,7 million Dollars.