Waste management in Smart Cities: the application of circular economy in Genoa (Italy)

Abstract: 

The so-called “intelligent bins” represent the more commonly acknowledged, example of feasible waste-related project in the context of Smart Cities. Nevertheless, smart waste management should be intended as well-beyond the simple installation of sensors on bins, and it should embrace an integrated planning strategy tailored for resource recovery and efficiency within a circular economy framework. The present paper reports the findings of an analysis of best practices on smart waste management in Europe and describes the circular economy initiative “LiguriaCircular” developed in Italy. From the findings of this investigation, it can be surely concluded that, on one side, ICT applications, through management of data on all levels by all stakeholders, can smartly enhance the visualization of intelligent waste management systems. On the other side, it can be also underlined that future research should be aimed to broaden the concept of Smart Cities towards full-scale creation of new patterns linking innovation and entrepreneurship for economic growth and value. By taking inspiration from existing experiences in the field of circular economy, the future directions envisaged for Smart Cities should be targeted towards industrial symbiosis, by development and implementation of tools for regenerative systems and symbiotic business links.