COST-BENEFIT-ANALYSIS OF THE MUNICIPAL SOLID-WASTE COLLECTION SYSTEM IN YANGON, MYANMAR

A study was conducted on the municipal solid waste management system i n the city of Yangon, Myanmar (formerly, Rangoon, Burma.) Special emph asis was given to the commercial and residential areas. The city now p roduces 1510 tons/day of municipal solid waste (MSW) from which Yangon municipal authority collects 484 tons/day, with a collection efficien cy of 32%, the uncollected remainder resulting in acute problems, heal th hazards, and environmental degradation. Major weaknesses are identi fied in the MSJW collection system for Yangon. The organizational stru cture is weak, collection methods are ineffective, vehicles are insuff icient, and foreign exchange is limited to imported collection vehicle s and spare parts from abroad. An attempt was made to find alternative systems appropriate to the present situations for collection improvem ent. An economic costing procedure was used to find the least-cost opt ion, and comparison between the proposed and existing systems were stu died on the basis of cost-benefit analysis. A proposal of a more effic ient collection system is forwarded. The proposed system is estimated to reduce up to 42% of the present total expenditure used on the colle ction services by the Cleaning Department under the Yangon City Develo pment Committee. In the proposed system, a labor-intensive waste colle ction system, suitable for a developing country, is introduced. More v ehicular force, with the container-hoist handling system, is recommend ed to increase collection efficiency and to promote labor and vehicula r productivity.