Abstract: The greenhouse gas （GHG） emission potential of four disposal processes of anaerobic landfill， micro-aerobic landfill， composting and incineration of rural domestic waste were compared and analyzed via the intergovernmental panel on climate change （IPCC） inventory guidelines combined with the life cycle assessment （LCA） method. The results showed that the GHG emission potential of per ton rural domestic waste disposal process from large to small was anaerobic landfill （1 324.72 kgCO2eq） > micro-aerobic landfill （34.97 kgCO2eq） > incineration （1.85 kgCO2eq） > composting （-106.03 kgCO2eq）. The GHG of anaerobic landfill mainly came from CH4 produced by anaerobic degradation. The GHG of micro-aerobic landfill mainly came from N2O produced by anaerobic-aerobic degradation. The GHG of composting mainly came from CH4 and N2O produced by biodegradation， and the reuse of the compost product could effectively offset part of the GHG emissions. The GHG of incineration mainly came from CO2 generated from fossil carbon conversion and indirect emission from incineration plant operation. On-gird power generation could effectively reduce GHG emission.

Key words: rural domestic waste, disposal process, GHG emission potential, intergovernmental panel on climate change （IPCC）, life cycle assessment （LCA）