The surge in organic solid waste generated across countries over recent decades, driven by population and economic growth, urbanization and consumption patterns, presents a pressing concern within the realm of Toxicology, Pollution, and the Environment. Organic solid waste comprises food scraps, yard wastes, agricultural wastes, and process residues, which constitutes a significant portion of the overall generated solid waste, especially in low-and middle-income countries. Improper management of organic solid waste poses a serious threat to food, energy, and water security, as well as detrimental effects on human health and the environment from the toxic substances. While short-term engineering solutions aimed mainly at reducing its volume and improving public health, recent waste management efforts have increasingly targeted mitigating climate change and resource depletion, in an attempt to develop a circular and low-carbon economy, in which wastes are recognized as resources.

Diverse methodologies for managing organic solid waste exist, including composting, anaerobic digestion, ethanol fermentation, incineration, pyrolysis, gasification, animal feeding. Decentralized waste utilization technologies are widely regarded as sustainable solutions. They offer adaptability to local sources while minimizing the costs associated with infrastructure, warehousing, and transportation. Moreover, the historical backdrop of thousands of years of dispersed agricultural civilization in human society attests to the existence and feasibility of sustainable organic solid waste recycling practices. However, the adoption of decentralized treatment approaches remains relatively low in many countries. Current studies mostly focused on the specific technical and/or environmental impacts, often overlooking long-term feasibility. There are still a lot of challenges for the practical application of decentralized organic solid waste treatment. The main objective of this Research Topic is to explore the advanced decentralized approaches on recycling of organic solid waste.

The knowledge contributed by experts in this Research Topic will provide an insight into the biological, sustainable, eco-friendly, and novel solutions to organic solid waste recycling in decentralized approaches. In future, this information will enlighten the related technology, policy and marketing on the field of environment protection, climate change mitigation and resource recovery.
We welcome novel and high-quality Original Research articles, as well as Review articles focused on the following topics:
1. Collection, warehousing and transportation process of organic solid waste for decentralized treatment;
2. Characterization of organic solid waste, focusing on its suitability for decentralized treatment and exploring the value-added products conversion technologies;
3. Application of solid organic waste converted products and environmental risk assessment and control on toxic substances such as pesticides, antibiotics, heavy metals, and pathogenic microorganisms;
4. Research and development of infrastructure facilities and equipment for decentralized organic solid waste treatment;
5. Case studies showcasing organic solid waste recycling in decentralized approaches with regional characteristics;
6. Economic assessments of decentralized waste utilization to better understand the financial aspects, potential cost savings, and economic benefits.

Submit your idea

Impact

Frontiers in Environmental Science

Participating Journals

Impact