Application of Rough Sets to Environmental Engineering Models

Rough Sets is a method of dealing with domains characterised by inconsistent and incomplete information. We apply this method to the problem of Environmental Engineering modelling. The solid waste management problem, in particular, is the subject of our analysis.Modelling large engineering problems is difficult because of the volume of information processed and the number of modelling decisions being made. In many cases, a chicken and the egg problem presents itself when modelling new or one-of-a-kind systems: The model is needed to gain the knowledge necessary for constructing the model.The generally accepted solution is to iteratively verify the importance of a parameter or model change until a concise model is created which appropriately supports the decision making process. We improve on this process by using Rough Sets to actively search for simplifying assumptions of the model and validate the process using a municipal solid waste management case.