A comprehensive approach to the feasibility assessment of on-campus food waste composting

Food waste management is increasingly being emphasized globally due to its economic and environmental impacts and strategic transformation towards sustainability. This can be observed from the increasing number of zero food waste (ZFW) initiatives that are being adopted by communities and institutions, including universities. Food waste composting, in particular, is increasingly being used for food waste recovery on university campuses. Campus sustainability managers are often challenged with the interrelated impacts of economic and noneconomic factors when selecting a composting system and the sensitivity and risks involved in such a decision. Reviewed research highlights the need for a comprehensive assessment of economic and operational feasibility in order to adopt an effective on-campus food waste composting system. This paper presents a methodological framework for assessing the feasibility of on-campus food waste composting systems. In addition to the composting project's economic feasibility, the framework utilizes the analytical hierarchy process to integrate noneconomic criteria into the assessment of composting alternatives. The framework then analyzes the sensitivity of the present worth of each composting system to projected changes in the economic parameters used. The framework also models the impacts of variability in the operational parameters of the composting system. Assessment values are then integrated into a normalized ranking of the alternative composting systems. The framework is illustrated through the assessment of three alternatives for installing on-campus food composters in a major university. The results provide insight and guidelines for adopting economically effective food waste recovery systems and ZFW initiatives for green and sustainable university campuses. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2022;18:964-977. © 2021 SETAC.