Developing Integrated Solid Waste Management Plans to Advance Circular Economies

In providing the essential service of waste management to their communities, local governments confront considerable challenges: competing priority issues (i.e., education and health); limited financial resources; growing populations and waste that are outpacing existing infrastructure; and a lack of long-term, data-driven, and goal-oriented approaches to strategically guide their waste management systems.

Solid Waste Management Plans for Circular Economies case study cover image

Most of the estimated 11 million metric tons of plastic that flow into the ocean each year comes from land-based sources. Around the world, local governments are responsible for managing their waste streams, including developing and implementing solid waste management plans that meet the needs and goals of the communities they serve in line with national and local regulations. However, many local governments do not have robust, sustainable plans in place to guide the implementation and monitoring of their solid waste system—limiting effectiveness and their ability to secure private sector financing.

Clean Cities, Blue Ocean, USAID’s flagship program under the Save our Seas Initiative, is working with ten partner countries in over 25 rapidly urbanizing cities in Asia, the Pacific Islands, Latin America, and the Caribbean to develop and implement strategies to prevent plastic waste from becoming ocean plastic pollution. The program supports local governments to develop Integrated Solid Waste Management Plans that guide strategic, long-term visions of how they should effectively collect, process, and recycle or dispose of their waste. Through technical assistance and various supporting tools, USAID helps governments plan solid waste management and 3R (reduce, reuse, recycle) programs that move cities away from traditional “take, make, waste” models and toward a local circular economy, where waste is used as a resource.