A Basic Study on the Estimation of Greenhouse Gas Emissions through the Analysis of the Properties of Household Waste in Northern Gyeongsangbuk-do

In order to achieve the National Greenhouse Gas Reduction Target, the government and Gyeongsangbuk-do waste sector are planning to significantly expand the waste reduction and recycling rate. Household waste in the northern part of Gyeongsangbuk-do burns household waste from 11 northern local governments at “Clear Nuri Park”, a wide-area waste treatment facility, and close properties and surveys of household waste are needed to reduce greenhouse gases generated by incineration and resource recovery facilities. Constellation analysis investigated a total of 1,110.4 kg of household waste over three seasons (spring, summer, and fall), with paper being the most common with 259.5 kg (23.4%), followed by other 256.8 kg (23.1%) > vinyl 241.6 kg (21.8%) > plastic 99 kg (8.9%). Recycling waste accounted for the largest proportion of household waste in the northern part of North Gyeongsang Province with 695.2 kg (63.0%), followed by incineration with 321.5 kg (29.2%), food logistics with 82.5 kg (7.4%), hazardous waste with 2.4 kg (0.2%), and landfill with 1.8kg (0.2%). According to the estimation of greenhouse gas generation from the incineration of household waste in the northern part of Gyeongsangbuk-do in 2022, the total greenhouse gas emission was 75,052.4tCO₂eq, and Andong City was the largest with 28,217.6tCO₂eq, followed by Yeongju City with 13,462.3tCO₂eq and Sangju City with 7,426.1tCO₂eq. Based on the amount brought into Clear Nuri Park in 2022, the total reduction of greenhouse gases was 12,012.94tCO₂eq, of which Andong City had the largest reduction with 4,637.52tCO₂eq reduction, followed by Yeongju City with 1,938.18tCO₂eq and Sangju City with 1,133.48tCO₂eq. In the case of reduction by constellation, plastics were found to be the most reduced to 11,779.7tCO₂eq, followed by rubber leather 152tCO₂eq, paper 59.1tCO₂eq, and other household wastes 18.6tCO₂eq. It is necessary to check the ratio of properties with high greenhouse gases (plastics and rubber leather) through the analysis of household waste properties by city and county.