Development of an expert system for better management of solid waste composting by pradeshiya sabhas in Sri Lanka

Abstract

The increasing population and the ever-changing life style of the public have begun to add to the growing solid waste problem in Sri Lanka. As a solution, Local Authorities, NGOs, researchers and environmentalists have implemented several composting projects. Unfortunately, most of these projects are either abandoned or operating under poor conditions due to social, economic and technical problems encountered and none of options have solved the solid waste management problem itself. A key issue that is highlighted is the lack of qualified personnel (experts) to advise and assist Local Authorities to adopt the best solid waste management practices.

Decision Support Systems and Expert Systems are favourable tools to overcome these problems. Therefore by capturing past mistakes, weak points and considering past experience, a user friendly Expert System called BESTCOMP was developed for better management of solid waste composting by Pradeshiya Sabhas in Sri Lanka. This research mainly focused on the behaviour of the physical, chemical and biological process in composting. The model is geared towards decision making as well as providing required expertise to solid waste composting hierarchy.