ABSTRACT
Recycling of biodegradable waste has attracted much interest from governments and researchers worldwide as a means of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A number of countries around the world (e.g., South Korea, European countries) have incorporated biodegradable waste recycling into their waste management systems (European Commission 2008; Kim and Kim 2010). In Japan, 220 out of 1800 Japanese local governments implement separate collection of household food waste, although incinera-
tion is still a common practice for food waste disposal (MOE, Japan 2008). Several studies have included life-cycle assessment and cost-benefit analysis of biodegradable waste recycling schemes (Eriksson et al. 2005; European Commission 2010; Fukushima et al. 2008; Sonesson et al. 2000; Sakai et al. 2005; Inaba et al. 2010). Sonesson et al. (2000) developed the ORWARE software to evaluate the environmental burdens associated with waste treatment processes such as incineration, composting, and anaerobic digestion. Eriksson et al. (2005) compared the environmental impacts of several waste management scenarios using ORWARE and concluded that anaerobic digestion reduces more GHG emissions than other treatment methods such as incineration and controlled landfilling. These findings are consistent with the results of other studies (European Commission 2010; Fukushima et al. 2008; Sakai et al. 2005; Inaba et al. 2010).
