Original Article

Waste Management & Research

1–6
Tariff determination for municipal waste ª The Author(s) 2020
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DOI: 10.1177/0734242X20916510
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Mahmood Rehmani1 , Tahir Islam2, Munnawar Naz Khokhar3,

Umer Iftikhar4 and Mohsin Shahzad5

Abstract
Waste management is an emerging focus in Pakistan. Specifically, waste-to-energy (WtE) projects are conceived to obtain benefits
from municipal waste collection in metropolitan cities. This study provides a brief background of WtE potential, waste collection
statistics, type of generated wastes, and current measures to build the confidence of investors in WtE projects. In addition, a brief
overview of government efforts for WtE and delineation of licensing requirements for power generation are discussed. The parameters
laid down for the determination of tariffs for municipal waste management power projects and the cost accounted for each parameter
are analyzed in detail. Similarly, this study deliberates on observations among stakeholders and compares Pakistan tariffs with those of
neighboring countries.

Keywords
Waste management, waste-to-energy, renewable energy, solid waste management, power projects, tariff determination

Received 9th August 2019, accepted 21st February 2020 by Associate Editor David E. Ross.

Introduction
The abrupt increase in municipal solid wastes (MSW) has
become a primary issue among policy-makers, environmental-
ists, and industrialists worldwide and a starting point to enhance
the idea of power generation from MSW. Massive urbanization,
economic development, and improved living conditions in met-
ropolitan cities have raised multiple environmental issues caused
by solid wastes. For instance, MSW include agricultural, domes-
tic, commercial, and miscellaneous disposals. In major metropol-
itan cities of the world, waste-to-energy (WtE) has been
recognized as a sustainable approach to generate electricity.
Moreover, WtE is considered one of the best strategies to solve
severe environmental issues caused by extensive and hazardous
MSW. In Pakistan, the growing middle-class income and rapid
urbanization have produced thousands of tonnes of solid wastes
each day. Additionally, poor management, low infrastructure to
gather and shift, and high corruption rate are the primary causes
of the accumulation of solid wastes within metropolitan cities.
Accordingly, Narayana (2009) found that MSW are responsible
for poor health conditions and environmental problems within
these cities.
In line with its efforts to promote renewable and indigenous
resources for power generation (Rourke et al., 2009), the National
Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) Pakistan has
granted a generation license to a private company, Lahore Xingz-
hong Renewable Energy Company (Private) Ltd., to establish a
40-megawatts (MW) WtE-based power plant at Lakhodair, dis-
trict Lahore (Khunshan, 2018). Public–private partnerships
(PPPs) are quite common in developing countries, given the effi-
cient availability of required resources using private company
capital. In Pakistan, PPPs play an important role in improving
efficiency, providing timely financing and better services to the
public. These projects have deployed a state-of-the-art
incineration-type electricity generation facility and the most suit-
able WtE technology (Hamza, 2018). The first project of its kind
has reduced 2000 tonnes of MSW from cities per day while
generating electricity, and thus seems like an immediate solution
that can address the waste problems and energy needs of Paki-
stan. Accordingly, NEPRA (National Electric Power Regulatory
Authority, 2018) has already announced a Competitive Upfront
Tariff for WtE projects based on a 25-year operational period
with an overall capacity cap of 250 MW. The four Pakistan
1
Department of Management Sciences, Faculty of Management and
Administrative Sciences, University of Sialkot, Pakistan
2
School of Economics and Management, Tongji University, Shanghai,
People’s Republic of China
3
Department of Management Sciences, COMSATS Institute of
Information Technology, Islamabad, Pakistan
4
Department of Leadership and Management Studies, Faculty of
Contemporary Studies, National Defence University, Islamabad,
Pakistan
5
School of Economics and Management, Dalian University of
Technology, Dalian, Liaoning, People’s Republic of China
Corresponding author:
Tahir Islam, School of Economics and Management, Tongji University,
Building A, Tongji Building, No. 1500 Siping, Shanghai, 200092,
People’s Republic of China.
Email: kktahir@hotmail.com
2 Waste Management & Research XX(X)
provinces and the federal territory are limited to shares of 50 MW
each. Successful implementation of these projects is expected to
pave the way for similar initiatives to solve pressing waste dis-
posal problems and challenges of limited space for landfills and
gas emissions, resulting in cleaner cities and healthier lifestyles.
Given its rapid industrialization and urbanization, Pakistan
faces difficult challenges due to heightened quantity and con-
stantly varied composition of solid wastes produced by increas-
ingly high consumerism and a growing population. At present,
policy-makers, environmentalists, and citizens consider MSW as
a primary topic that requires serious attention from the govern-
ment for proper management. Despite considerable research on
MSW in developed nations, such studies are limited in Pakistan.
To highlight this topic, the present study proposes several con-
tributions in the context of Pakistan’s cities. First, MSW in Paki-
stan, where poor handling of solid waste adversely affects the
environment and citizens’ health conditions, is analyzed. Second,
the tariff determination in relation to MSW is explored in detail.
In summary, this study aims to explore the earnestness of the
GOP (Government of Pakistan) toward WtE projects, suitability
of policies, potential, and the environment for future WtE proj-
ects. Specifically, this study focuses on MSW to capture interna-
tional investors’ attention and stimulate their interests in working
on such projects under PPPs. In addition, the current situation of
MSW in metropolitan cities is highlighted to help policy-makers,
world agencies such as the World Bank, non-governmental orga-
nizations, and other organizations that invest in projects related to
MSWs. Furthermore, the findings of this study provide a guide-
line on significant parameters that require extensive attention
while operationalizing WtE projects in Asian countries.
Background of WtE in Pakistan
The Renewable Energy Policy (Government of Pakistan, 2006)
only focused on solar, wind, and hydro sources. Therefore, the
Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB), in consultation
with all provinces and 199 other energy stakeholders, updated
and presented a revised Alternative Renewable Energy Policy in
2012. Wind, solar, hydro, bagasse, co-generation, WtE, and geo-
thermal energies are included, providing extremely attractive
financial and fiscal incentives to local and foreign investors while
offering a level playing field (Ministry of Finance, Government
of Pakistan, 2013). The GOP’s commitment to develop alterna-
tive renewable energy sectors and the AEDB’s extensive efforts
paved the way for significant development of a considerable WtE
base in the country.
The current condition of Pakistan’s major cities, including
Quetta, Peshawar, Karachi, and Lahore, confirms the fact that
MSW has become a major challenge for the metropolitan gov-
ernment. This problem is worsening especially in the wake of
rapid urbanization in the country. According to the Ministry of
Finance, Government of Pakistan (2013), the country produces
up to 50,000 tonnes of MSW and agricultural wastes per day,
including rice husks, cotton sticks, and bagasse. This enormous
number of wastes has the potential to generate up to 5000 MW of
power.
This potential has drawn extensive interests from domestic
and international investors. For example, the World Bank has
funded a project to carry out a detailed study for biomass/WtE
projects in 20 Pakistan cities. A similar study that can generate up
to 10 MW of energy is being carried out for Karachi. The AEDB
has also issued a letter of intent to establish a 12-MW biomass-to-
energy project in the province of Sindh, which would be based on
bagasse and agriculture wastes. Similar plants are also being
considered in Punjab, the largest province of Pakistan in terms
of population.
Ghauri (2018) presented a report on WtE potential in Pakistan
during the Expert Group Meeting on Sustainable Application of
WtE in the Asian Region held on 22–23 February 2018 at Busan,
Republic of Korea. This expert meeting was organized under the
patronage of the United Nations Office for Sustainable Develop-
ment. Sadef et al. (2016) found that Pakistan, with a population of
209,970,000 and density of 244.4/km2 (633.0/square mile), gen-
erates approximately 20 million tonnes of solid wastes per year,
at an increasing rate of over 2% annually. The GOP estimated
that 71,000 tonnes of solid wastes are generated per day, mainly
from major metropolitan areas. Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city
with a population of 20,500,000, generates approximately 9440
tonnes of municipal wastes daily. Solid waste generation in Paki-
stan ranges between 0.283 and 0.612 kg/capita/day, and the waste
generation growth rate is 2.4% per year (Korai et al., 2017).
Lahore, the second largest city with a population of
10,000,000, generates 6510 tonnes of solid wastes per day. MSW
in Pakistan are mainly composed of ash, bricks, dirt (18%), glass
(6%), textile (2%), cardboard (7%), food wastes (30%), leather
(1%), paper (6%), plastic (9%), rubber (1%), metal (4%), wood
(2%), and yard wastes (14%).
Highlights of the first 40 40-MW WtE project
awarded with generation license
Punjab, the largest province in Pakistan in terms of population,
has taken the lead in conducting a feasibility study for a 40-MW
WtE project in Lahore, the provincial capital. NEPRA Pakistan, a
power regulatory authority, has accepted an application from a
private company, Lahore Xingzhong Renewable Energy Com-
pany Ltd., for a generation license for the 40-MW MSW power
project to be constructed at Lakhodair, a site in the suburbs of
Lahore. NEPRA announced the first upfront tariff for MSW
power projects (Business Recorder, 2018) at 9.8257 US cents,
and has allowed a project cost of US $3.5 million per MW. This
amount seems to be reasonable and comparable to other projects
in neighboring countries. The project aims to have an installed
capacity of 40 MW with two turbine generators of 20 MW each,
and the total cost is US $220 million. The project is expected to
start commercial operation by the end of the year 2022, wherein
its generated electricity would be fed to the national grid of
Lahore Electricity Supply Company 132/11 kilovolts (kV)
Mominpura. To undertake this proposed project of the Punjab
Rehmani et al. 3

Table 1. Generation tariff for refuse derived fuel power project.

Tariff components Rs. /kWh WACC

1–10 11–30 Levelized 1–15 16–30 Levelized Levelized

FCC 3.5294 3.5294 3.5294 3.5294 3.5294 3.5294 3.5294

Variable O&M –foreign 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526
Variable O&M – foreign 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526 0.2526
Variable O&M – local 0.1684 0.1684 0.1684 0.1684 0.1684 0.1684 0.1684
Fixed O&M – local 0.2807 0.2807 0.2807 0.2807 0.2807 0.2807 0.2807
Insurance 0.1754 0.1754 0.1754 0.1754 0.1754 0.1754 0.1754
Working capital 0.0230 0.0230 0.0230 0.0230 0.0230 0.0230 0.0230
ROE/WACC 0.9665 0.9665 0.9665 0.9665 0.9665 0.9665 0.9665
Debt servicing/depreciation 2.7666 1.8033 2.2311 1.8001 0.7871
Total 8.1627 5.3961 7.1994 7.6271 5.3961 7.1962 7.0592
Fixed O&M: fixed operational and maintenance expense; FCC: fixed capacity charge; ROE: return on equity; WACC: weighted average cost of
capital.

Table 2. For municipal solid wastes technology generation tariff.

Tariff components Rs. /kWh WACC

1–10 11–30 Levelized 1–15 16–30 Levelized Levelized

FCC 1.7647 1.7647 1.7647 1.7647 1.7647 1.7647 1.7647

Variable O&M – foreign 0.3400 0.3400 0.3400 0.3400 0.3400 0.3400 0.3400
Variable O&M – local 0.2267 0.2267 0.2267 0.2267 0.2267 0.2267 0.2267
Fixed O&M – local 0.3778 0.3778 0.3778 0.3778 0.3778 0.3778 0.3778
Insurance 0.2361 0.2361 0.2361 0.2361 0.2361 0.2361 0.2361
Working capital 0.0461 0.0461 0.0461 0.0461 0.0461 0.0461 0.0461
ROE/WACC 1.2635 1.2635 1.2635 1.2635 1.2635 1.2635 1.2635
Debt servicing/depreciation 3.6169 2.3576 2.9168 2.3534 1.0291
Total 7.8717 4.2548 6.6123 7.1716 4.2548 6.6082 6.4483
Fixed O&M: fixed operational and maintenance expense; FCC: fixed capacity charge; ROE: return on equity; WACC: weighted average cost of
capital.

government, three Chinese companies, including China ENFI
Engineering Corporation, MCC Tongsin Resources Co. Ltd., and
Chengdu Xingrong Environment Co. Ltd., have established a
new special purpose vehicle (SPV) company named Lahore
Xingzhong Renewable Energy Ltd. This SPV company would
be responsible for the investment, construction, operation, and
transfer of WtE projects.
Upfront tariff for MSW power projects in
Pakistan
Under the Tariff Standards and Procedure Rules 1998 and
Upfront Tariff Regulations 2011, NEPRA began proceedings to
determine new upfront tariffs for electricity generation from
MSW power projects in February 2017. Accordingly, NEPRA
released an advertisement in the press on 25 February and 5
March 2017 to seek comments, views, and information from
various stakeholders. Two intervention requests were received
from Whistle Blower and Anwar Kamal Law Associates. The
proposed generation tariff for refuse derived fuel (RDF) power
projects is given in Table 1.
The estimates for the NEPRA generation tariff explain the
project cost. Tables 1 and 2 show the two project estimations for
discussion, deliberation, and input from all stakeholders. NEPRA
has estimated US $1.3 million per MW for RDF power projects
and US $1.7 million for MSW power projects. Additionally, the
annual plant factor is 75%, insurance is estimated 1% of engi-
neering, procurement and construction (EPC) cost, debt–equity
structure of the estimated plants is 75:25, internal rate of return
(IRR) is 15%, and the Karachi Interbank Offered Rate is 3%. The
exchange rate varies and is calculated at the time of agreement.
The estimated project debt period for repayment is 10–15 years,
and the weighted average cost of capital (WACC) is assumed to
be 11.30% for 30 years. Similarly, the estimated efficiency for
both plants is 29.24%. Notably, calorific value of 9918.597 btu/
kg is assumed for solid WtE power projects. In addition, a fuel
price of Pakistan rupees (Rs.) 1500/tonne is assumed for MSW
power plant and Rs. 3000/tonne for RDF technology including
freight.
Specifically, the proposed MSW technology generation tariff
is shown in Table 2.
A third-party observer, Anwar Kamal Law Associates
(AKLA), considered that the upfront determination is
4 Waste Management & Research XX(X)
mismatched with the least cost generation plan and lacks the
provision of stakeholder participation. AKLA added that effi-
ciencies of new technology are low, and owing to the unavail-
ability of fuel, the power plants may not attain the desired factor.
Furthermore, AKLA questioned the consideration of a costlier
power plant, low plant factor, and low-efficiency technology
when more efficient plants are available in the market.
Other stakeholders likewise commented on the proposed
upfront tariff. The Energy Department of Khyber Pakh-
tunkhwa government desired an initial environmental exami-
nation and impact assessment report for review. The Energy
Department of Sindh Province highlighted the utilization of
alternative energy technologies other than wind and solar.
This department also welcomed the availability of an upfront
tariff for solid WtE power projects, which would save time in
solving energy crises and similarly attract investments. The
Hyderabad Electric Supply Company supported the initiative
of NEPRA and suggested that the fixed cost component for
RDF should be the same as that of MSW. Return on equity/
WACC for solid waste power plants needs to be reviewed on
the basis of project life, and IRR may also be divided equally
into 30 years. The Lahore Waste Management Company sug-
gested that the project cost is low, efficiency is in the inter-
national range of 20–25%, and calorific value is low against
the proposed figure due to greater moisture of garbage con-
tent. In addition, IRR of 15% for a renewable energy project
is low because the aim is not only to produce electricity but
also to preserve the environment.
Another commentator, the Waste Busters, emphasized that
NEPRA should give due consideration to several factors while
determining the tariff. These factors included no dumping fee,
non-disclosure of various project development costs, duties on
imported equipment, financial and other professional fees in cost
parameters, and financial modeling. The Waste Busters pointed
out that the capital cost of WtE projects typically ranges from US
$2.5 to US $3.0 million per MW, which is twice as much as the
cost of power generated by gas-fired solar and other feed-stock
system power plants. Auxiliary expenses on compliance with
emission control norms, MSW feeding/recovery system, and ash
extraction system consume at least 16% gross power generated
by the project, which is a generally high amount. Furthermore,
the efficiency range is 26–30% compared with other types of
renewable energy plants.
NEPRA deliberated and considered the observations of such
commentators and interveners. The project cost was also com-
pared with similar MSW projects in Europe, Turkey, and neigh-
boring countries. The choice of technology and emission control
standards were noted to be the major drivers of the US $2.5 to US
$6 million project cost, derived by the authorities on the basis of
information and data available on incineration power projects.
The cost depends upon the size, type of technology, features of
solid waste, and emission control standards.
Given that the core objective of the WtE plant was environ-
ment cleaning, NEPRA stated that the project should cater to
emission hazards. Furthermore, the plant should perform
functions of waste collection, dumping, and disposal of wastes,
whereas the cost of electricity generation could be placed on end
consumers. Consequently, prudent project cost required evalua-
tion for the incineration power plants. The per-unit tariff for the
MSW power plant in Turkey was 13/kWh US cents, whereas that
of the MSW Beijing power plant was approximately 10/kWh US
cents and US $4 million per MW. NEPRA assessed the project
cost of US $3.5 million per MW for MSW power plants, which
included Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) US $2.4815,
non-EPC US $0.6049, custom duties and cess (a form of tax
charged/levied over and above the base tax liability of a taxpayer)
(5.95%) US $0.1476, and financing fees US $0.2660. The debt-
to-equity ratio of 75:25 was considered for MSW energy projects
at the nascent stage in Pakistan (Sadef et al., 2016).
The State Bank of Pakistan approved a 6% flat rate with a
debt-servicing period of 10 years for renewable energy projects.
NEPRA considered this rate as a financing facility that would be
made available to interested sponsors, given that renewable
energy power plants have a capacity of 1–50 MW. However,
such financing required mandatory completion of prescribed
requirements of the AEDB and other public sector organizations,
and compliance to Renewable Energy Policy. The Renewable
Energy Policy 2006 is applicable to MSW power projects, and
the tariff has also been finalized on the same basis. The upfront
tariff may be adjusted in case of installation of similar projects on
commercial financing terms. However, adjustments are consid-
ered only after exhausting the financing facility as available
under the State Bank of Pakistan.
The time period of 2 years was considered reasonable for the
project construction. Each of the four provinces has been allowed
to install 50 MW capacity MSW projects to avail of the instant
upfront tariff. Similarly, 50 MW maximum cap was awarded to
Islamabad Federal Territory. Given the mixed fuel and operation
and maintenance issues, the 5% operation and maintenance cost
of an MSW power plant was allowed. 15% of auxiliary consump-
tion was assessed with a tariff control period of 25 years from the
date of commercial operations.
Table 3 shows the NEPRA approved tariff for MSW power
projects. This tariff is applicable for the next 25 years from com-
mercial operation date, but only applicable to MSW power proj-
ects. In addition, for the estimated projects, the discharge
criterion is the energy charge.
The approved tariff is valid for all new MSW power projects.
Only those companies that are eligible for such an upfront tariff
are recommended by the AEDB and other related government
agencies. The companies also certify the newness of the installed
plant machinery and its conformity with international standards.
Once exercised, the decision of sponsors to opt for an upfront
tariff is irrevocable. The power producers could offer electricity
to the respective distribution company at 11 kV or 132 kV. The
approved upfront tariff does not consider the carbon emission
factor. Moreover, upon actual realization of carbon credits, the
revenue is distributed between the power producer and the power
purchaser.
Rehmani et al.
Table 3. NEPRA determined and approved the following upfront tariff for municipal solid waste power projects for delivery of
electricity to the power purchase.
Tariff components Municipal solid wastes incineration power projects
1–10 11–25
Rs. /kWh
Variable O&M – foreign 0.2100 0.2100
Variable O&M – local 0.3149 0.3149
Rs. /kW/hr
Fixed O&M – local 1.2248 1.2248
Insurance 0.3499 0.3499
ROE/ROEDC 2.2272 2.2272
Debt servicing 4.9494 – 3.3504
Levelized tariff – Rs. /kWh 12.4562 5.5941
Levelized Tariff – US cents/ 11.8630 5.3277
kWh
Fixed O&M: fixed operation and maintenance component of tariff; CPI: the applicable revised Consumer Price Index; revised ROE component of
tariff; ROE: return on equity; KIBOR: Karachi Interbank Offered Rate; PKR: Pak Rupee; USD: American Dollar.
Critical review of WtE in Pakistan
Solid waste management is a matter of grave concern in Pakistan
as casualties reach approximately five million citizens each year
due to diseases caused by wastes. Similar to those of other devel-
oping nations, the metropolitan areas in Pakistan are inundated by
a wide range of economic, legislative, cultural, and social issues.
The generated waste is considerably greater than the number of
waste management facilities and landfill sites. Consequently,
wastes are piling up along roadsides, canals, and open areas.
Among the few landfill sites that remain available, even fewer
are in operation. Even in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, no
permanent landfills are to be found. Wastes on the roads are a
constant threat to humans, the environment, and other living
creatures’ health. Such poor solid waste management causes var-
ious diseases and environment-related issues (Hameed et al.,
2020; Lew, 2019). Due to a limited budget, the GOP is being
criticized for spending billions on garbage disposal, whereas lim-
ited funds are available for people’s health. Even after spending
billions, heaps of garbage and litter are seen everywhere around
Lahore City (Yasir, 2018). Waste disposal to generate energy
would lessen this pressure on metropolitan governments to
develop landfill sites and concentrate more on waste collection.
Moreover, the national grid has a demand and supply gap; rele-
vant authorities are constantly working on alternate approaches to
generate electricity without relying on expensive imported petro-
leum products, which is already a matter of grave concern for the
economy and balance of trade. Although the capital cost of WtE
plants is almost twice that of energy generated by solar, gas-fired,
and other feed-stock system power plants, the GOP Ministry of
Petroleum and Natural Resources has supported the usage of
municipal wastes for electricity generation in their comments
with respect to awarding the first license for installation of a WtE
plant (Hameed et al., 2019). This project would not only reduce
reliance on gas generation but also bridge the gap between elec-
tricity demand and supply.
5
Indexation
Levelized
0.2100 US CPI and PKR/USD
0.3149 CPI general
1.2248 CPI general
0.3499 PKR/USD
2.2272 PKR/USD
LIBOR/KIBOR and PKR/USD (if applicable)
10.3170
9.8257
In awarding the license to generate electricity, concerned
authorities focus on environmental cleaning and only a design
guideline has been given to ensure that the plant caters to the
emission hazards. The incentive for sorting with the objective of
recycling is missing and may hamper the recycling activities in
the country. According to the GOP Ministry of Environment,
plastics account for an average 9% of the total generated waste.
Most of the plastic and metal-based materials, except for shop-
ping bags, are collected by scavengers for recycling before the
waste reaches the landfill or dumping site. However, all the
energy produced from all types of waste, including plastics, is
now considered renewable. These recycling processes therefore
need attention in future similar projects. Additionally, the sorting
of solid wastes needs promotion in the metropolitan cities of
Pakistan. Currently, consumers do not carry out sorting, and sin-
gly waste bins are made available to collect garbage. However,
sorting at the fundamental level of households can reduce the
effect of air pollution caused by the incineration and encourage
recycling.
Conclusion
This study focused on solid waste management, which has been a
difficult challenge for the governments in all four provinces of
Pakistan. The federal government has only recently taken con-
crete steps to convert this challenge into an opportunity, and the
first license for installation of the WtE plant has been awarded.
Accordingly, the upfront tariff has also been defined for this first
and upcoming similar WtE projects across Pakistan. The total
potential of installation of similar plants in other provinces has
also been demarcated. The award of a first power generation
license to a WtE plant has not only paved the way for other
similar projects but also defined tariff parameters for power pur-
chasers from WtE power producers.
Furthermore, this study highlights detailed deliberation on
observations from various stakeholders before issuance of a
6 Waste Management & Research XX(X)
license, which provides a thorough understanding of the issues
that may arise in developing economies in terms of tariff deter-
mination and installation of WtE plants. Similarly, countries
interested in WtE projects need to assess the issues involved in
waste collection, dumping facilities, and available amount of
wastes that can be used for incineration. Potential investors could
be attracted by assessing the potential of WtE projects near big
cities on the basis of the available amount of wastes. Given that
the core objective of the WtE plant is environmental cleaning,
projects in this domain of power generation must cater to emis-
sion hazards.
Research on MSW in the context of Pakistan metropolitan
cities is still in its introductory phase. Thus, in the short term,
WtE through incinerators may be a good strategy to further man-
age solid waste. However, in the long term, incinerators are
responsible for emissions of hot gases such as carbon dioxide
and nitrous oxide. As a result, this study proposes to policy-
makers and government officials that as the main purpose of the
MSW power plant is environment cleaning, therefore, priority
may be given to the tariff determination for disposal of waste,
however, due consideration also need to be given to sorting of
waste before entering into incineration plants to promote recy-
cling and reduce emission hazards. At present, incinerator-based
WtE from MSW appears to be an attractive option for solid
wastes in developing countries. However, such projects are
extensively debated around the world given that their injurious
pollutants may be discharged into the water, air, and land, pos-
sibly and negatively influencing people’s health and the environ-
ment. Thus, a detailed and sustained plan is required to stop their
negative influence on stakeholders. Additionally, this paper aims
to gather the attention of senior officials regarding the sorting of
solid wastes, given that MSW collection, sorting, and dumping
are the key issues in Pakistan’s metropolitan cities. Therefore,
sorting solid wastes may reduce the effect of air pollution caused
by incineration. For instance, solid wastes are the combined
domestic (i.e., food, tissues, product packs, and boxes), commer-
cial, and industrial wastes. As a result, sorting solid waste is a
source of income through proper recycling, which can also reduce
the emission of dangerous gases.
Declaration of conflicting interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to
the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The authors received no financial support for the research, author-
ship, and/or publication of this article.
ORCID iD
Mahmood Rehmani https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0968-8588
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