Evaluation of indicators for the management of urban solid waste generated by national databases

Abstract

Databases, whether public or private, provide information and data on performance indicators related to urban solid waste that can contribute to the development and improvement of public policies in this sector. In view of the above, this work aimed to analyze and compare the performance indicators adopted by the Brazilian Association of Urban Cleaning and Special Waste Companies, the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics and the National Sanitation Information System — Solid Waste on the mass of urban solid waste collected, selective collection and final disposal, in order to explain their differences and outline an overview of the provision of this service in the country. To obtain the data, a bibliographic survey was carried out using books and academic works on the topic; and the websites of the aforementioned databases were accessed to verify the indicators used in the assessment of basic sanitation throughout the Brazilian territory. From the analysis, divergences were evident in the published information, mainly in relation to the amount of urban solid waste collected and the municipal initiatives for selective collection. The study highlighted the need to adopt auditing and information certification procedures to improve the quality of regulation and management in the sector, in order to promote data reliability; in addition to improving the structuring of questionnaires and statistical techniques, aiming to make the diagnosis of the studied scenario as realistic as possible to define the most appropriate management model.