Cálculo del inventario de gases efecto invernadero en los rellenos sanitarios regionales en apoyo a las actividades de la dirección técnica de aseo de la superintendencia de servicios públicos domiciliarios

Abstract

This study analyzes the inventory of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in regional landfills in Colombia, using data from the Superintendency of Public Services (SSPD). The main purpose is to evaluate the contribution of these sites to national GHG emissions and determine the level of uncertainty in the estimates.

To do this, different models were compared to estimate methane emissions proposed by institutions such as the IPCC, IDEAM and the EPA, selecting the EPA's LandGEM model as the most suitable for the available data, taking as a control line the National Inventory of Atmospheric Emissions and Absorptions of Colombia. The results indicate that regional landfills are a significant source of methane emissions in Colombia with a contribution in 2021 of 10,524 Gg CO2 Eq, with significant variations between regions. An upward trend in emissions was identified in recent years, which is related to the increase in the amount of waste disposed of.

The uncertainty analysis revealed that the EPA model's emissions estimates have a small margin of error, falling within the ±11.01% range of the National Emissions Report, mainly due to the lack of detailed data on waste composition and landfill operating conditions. It is recommended that the quality and frequency of data collected be improved to reduce uncertainty in the estimates and facilitate the implementation of mitigation measures.