Seasonal variation of municipal solid waste generation and composition in four East European cities

•We assessed MSW generation and composition in four East European cities.•Seasonal variation in MSW generation was affected by country-specific factors.•Time series models accurately represented the seasonal variation of MSW composition.•Winters additive algorithm revealed the highest accuracy in predicting MSW generation. The quality of recyclable and residual municipal solid waste (MSW) is, among other factors, strongly influenced by the seasonal variation in MSW composition. However, a relatively marginal amount of published data on seasonal MSW composition especially in East European countries do not provide sufficient information on this phenomenon. This study provides results from municipal waste composition research campaigns conducted during the period of 2009–2011 in four cities of Eastern European countries (Lithuania, Russia, Ukraine and Georgia). The median monthly MSW generation values ranged from 18.70 in Kutaisi (Georgia) to 38.31kgcapita−1month−1 in Kaunas (Lithuania). The quantitative estimation of seasonal variation was performed by fitting the collected data to time series forecasting models, such as non-parametric seasonal exponential smoothing, Winters additive, and Winters multiplicative methods.