APPLICATION OF MULTIVARIATE TOOLS FOR THE STUDY OF ENVIRONMENTAL VULNERABILITY IN SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL ACROSS DIFFERENT DEVELOPMENT REGIONS IN THE STATE OF PERNAMBUCO
Solid Waste, Multivariate Analysis, Data Processing, Development Regions
In gravimetric analysis, it is possible to conduct environmental assessments that help identify environmental impacts associated with the generation of municipal solid waste. This contributes to the implementation of more sustainable practices by providing data to assess the pollution potential of soil, water, and air. The objective of this study was to integrate gravimetric composition data of municipal solid waste from the State and Intermunicipal Solid Waste Management Plans within the Development Region of Sertão do São Francisco, considering both environmental and social indicators perspectives. This research focused on the municipalities located within the political division of the State of Pernambuco, according to Complementary Law No. 388/2018, covering the Development Regions (RD) of Sertão do São Francisco, Sertão Central, and Sertão de Itaparica. These include the municipalities of Afrânio, Belém do São Francisco, Cabrobó, Carnaubeira da Penha, Cedro, Dormentes, Floresta, Itacuruba, Jatobá, Lagoa Grande, Mirandiba, Orocó, Paramirim, Petrolândia, Petrolina, Salgueiro, Santa Maria da Boa Vista, São José do Belmonte, Serrita, Tacaratu, Terra Nova, and verdejantes. These municipalities are distributed across the mesoregions of São Francisco Pernambucano and Sertão Pernambucano, and are located within the microregions of Petrolina, Itaparica, and Salgueiro. Quantitative data were collected to construct the proposed scenarios. The analysis was carried out using simple and multivariate statistical techniques, presented through graphs, tables, charts, and flowcharts, as well as through indirect discourse embedded within the results section. The method used to determine the gravimetric composition of solid waste in the three selected municipalities—Petrolina, Salgueiro, and Itacuruba—involved manual separation of samples collected directly from dumps and landfills, brought by dump trucks or compactors. Samples were weighed and sorted into categories. Each material was then individually weighed, and by applying the rule of three, the relative (or percentage) weight of each component was calculated—i.e., the waste composition by weight. Additionally, new databases were integrated, containing information on groundwater quality analyses at the sites of deactivated dumps. A sustainability index was proposed for each municipality, incorporating all variables studied in this research, with the aim of establishing a risk level and urgency for allocating resources to improve the socio-environmental quality of the population.