Using Remote sensing and GIS in waste assessment and Management, Liwa case study

Abstract. Remote sensing is the acquisition of data about object(s) without making physical contact with it. Remote sensing images are very useful data for the management and assessment of hazardous wastes. For example, remotely sensed data have been used in numerous applications to detect and analyze the presence of hazardous waste, waste-disposal sites and landfills. The ability to monitor sites over time is very effective to assess environmental impacts and also to evaluate compliance in remediation cases. Moreover, historic aerial photographs supply the documentation required for analysts to compile a record over time of uncontrolled waste disposal site boundaries, points of access and adjacent land use. Comparative temporal studies of a waste disposal site using historical aerial photos, help to determine how an area has changed over time and in turn offers a better understanding of current site conditions. The examination of a site over time allows for the analysis of succession or replacement of land cover to determine the status of an abandoned site and to identify a hazardous site that is currently obscured due to new development. Multispectral satellite images have been utilized to monitor hazardous waste sites with respect to land use, regional risk and the spectral characteristics of specific disposal sites and their pollution profile. This paper reviews the literature of using remote sensing and GIS in the context of waste management and assessment. Moreover, a case study of using GIS for landfill site selection of Liwa walayat, Oman will be presented with some recommended sites according to planning and environmental criteria.
Key words: Waste assessment, waste management, Landfill, Site Selection, GIS, Remote sensing