Remote sensing applications in solid waste monitoring and management

The rapid growth of solid waste generation carries significant environmental and public health challenges globally. Traditional waste monitoring methods are not cost-effective and are limited in spatial and temporal scope. Remote sensing, encompassing satellite, aerial, and unmanned platforms, has emerged as a transformative approach to identify, monitor, and manage solid waste sites. This review provides a comprehensive synthesis of the state-of-the-art in remote sensing applications for solid waste monitoring and management, covering technological developments in the past 2 decades. We examine sensor platforms (optical, hyperspectral, thermal, synthetic aperture radar, light detection and ranging), data processing and machine learning workflows, major application domains (landfill mapping, illegal dumping detection, volumetric assessment, thermal anomaly detection, greenhouse gas monitoring, marine plastic tracking), and integration with geographic information system and IoT (Internet of Things) systems. The present study also evaluates operational successes, methodological challenges, policy implications, and outlines a research roadmap for enhancing the accuracy, scalability, and real-world adoption of remote sensing in waste management.