An approach to reducing vulnerabilities within the economic security system of a regional municipal solid waste management operator

The article examines the role of a waste collection site in the economic security system of a regional solid municipal waste operator (hereinafter referred to as the regional MSW operator).

The relevance of the study is обусловлена by the fact that a waste collection site constitutes the primary infrastructure link in the MSW movement chain and simultaneously serves as a point where operational, financial, environmental and social threats are concentrated. The objective of the study is to provide a theoretical rationale for the role of a waste collection site in the economic security system of a regional MSW operator and to develop an approach to assessing its vulnerability.

The study employs systemic, structural-functional and risk-oriented analysis, classification, comparative assessment and generalization of scientific findings. Main results. A waste collection site is considered a key element of the municipal solid waste management infrastructure, whose proper condition affects compliance with MSW collection schedules, transportation costs, the quality of waste management services, the level of consumer complaints and the financial stability of the regional operator. The main groups of threats arising at the waste collection site level are systematized, including infrastructural, operational, weather-and-climate-related, financial, environmental, social, legal and information threats.

A comprehensive approach to assessing the vulnerability of a waste collection site is proposed. The approach is based on a system of indicators characterizing the reliability of MSW collection and transportation, the technical condition of waste collection infrastructure, the number of consumer complaints, the amount of additional expenses and the effectiveness of implementing a digital monitoring system. The study concludes that waste collection sites should be incorporated into the system of continuous risk monitoring and economic security management of regional MSW operators.