The development of material recovery facilities in the United States: status and cost structure analysis

The rapidly increasing generation of solid waste, continuous landfill closings, and public reluctance concerning the siting and building of more incinerators have motivated various recycling programs at both the national and local levels in many countries. Material recycling has currently become an essential feature in the integrated solid waste management system. Although Taiwan has set a bold agenda in solid waste recycling for the past 5 years, the inherent uncertainties regarding the economic feasibility and the lack of a comprehensive evaluation of the privatization of centralized material recovery facilities (MRFs) are still impediments in decision making for waste management. Therefore, an understanding of the fast track of MRFs development in the United States, and of the related construction and operating cost structures of these facilities, becomes helpful in creating a valuable solid waste management strategy. The results of this analysis can also be applied to future investment forecasting and policy making in many countries.