Evaluation of Strategic Management Strategies for Reducing Household Municipal Waste Using Symmetric Fuzzy Numbers

This research aimed to examine which of the selected strategies can most effectively influence households to reduce their total municipal waste and thus protect the environment. To achieve this goal, a sample of 202 households from the Brčko District of BiH was used. Respondents evaluated six strategies against ten criteria, expressing their assessments through linguistic values. These linguistic inputs were modeled using symmetric fuzzy numbers, ensuring a consistent and mathematically robust representation of uncertainty and subjective judgment. The research used the fuzzy SiWeC (Simple Weight Calculation) method to determine the importance of the criteria, and the fuzzy TOPSIS (Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution), ARAS (Additive Ratio Assessment), and SAW (Simple Additive Weighted) methods to rank the strategies. The application of several methods in decision-making helps validate results and verify the robustness of strategy selection. These methods identified “waste reduction efficiency” as the most important criterion and “Strategy 3—Packaging return machines” as the most effective overall. Furthermore, analysis of demographic subgroups revealed significant variations in the perceived value of alternative strategies. Consequently, this study concludes that to optimize municipal waste management, strategies should be tailored to specific demographic profiles. This targeted approach would enhance waste reduction at the source, divert more waste from landfills, and promote the broader implementation of circular economy principles. The use of symmetric fuzzy numbers provided a reliable and stable foundation for this multi-criteria decision-making analysis.