Evaluating waste management performance in South Korea: insights over 27 years

Waste poses a significant global challenge, necessitating tailored solutions for each country’s unique context. To foster a circular economy and achieve carbon neutrality, nations are developing diverse environmental strategies for managing waste. To date, there is no related deep study and data visualization mapping using a ternary diagram for Korean historical and regional waste management. This study examines the evolution of waste generation and treatment in South Korea from 1997 to 2022, aiming to propose strategies for future waste management. By assessing the proportion of waste treated through incineration, landfill, and recycling, this research utilizes a ternary diagram for an intuitive visualization of the data. The ternary diagram method proves effective for regional comparisons of waste management practices and for tracking historical shifts. The study offers a detailed regional and temporal analysis of waste flows, also benchmarking South Korea’s waste management efforts against EU and OECD standards. Notably, South Korea’s approach to waste management has evolved markedly, shifting from 63.85% landfill, 7.12% incineration, and 29.04% recycling in 1997, to 10.23% landfill, 24.00% incineration, and 65.77% recycling in 2022. This transformation over 27 years underscores South Korea's commitment to proactive and improved waste management.

Graphical abstract

Ternary diagram of the 1997 and 2022 dataset for the visualization of municipal waste management performance of 17 municipalities for the analysis of national data.