Developing Optimization Tools for Municipal Solid Waste Collection in the Argentine City of Berazategui.

This article focuses on the development and implementation of mathematical and computational optimization tools to improve the municipal solid waste (MSW) collection system in Berazategui, Argentina. The approach addresses three interrelated problems: designing balanced and simply structured collection zones using a heuristic that considers collectors' walking distances and zone squareness; generating efficient truck routes within each zone via a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model that accounts for traffic restrictions and a collection strategy called achique; and assigning trucks to pairs of zones through a biobjective MILP model to balance drivers' workloads based on route length and waste load. The implemented solution, adopted by the municipality in 2020, resulted in a more equitable workload distribution among crews, a 22.6% reduction in total truck route length, and significant savings in fuel and maintenance costs. The methodology is adaptable to similar urban contexts and can be updated efficiently as fleet size or city characteristics change.