Waste Management

Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister of India, Dharmendra Pradhan has an ambitious new solution to tackle the problem of solid waste in India. Earlier this year in October, Pradhan announced his massive plan to set up 5000 biogas plants across the country over the next five years that will convert agricultural residue, cattle dung and municipal solid waste into usable biogas. This biogas will then be compressed and distributed as a replacement for vehicular fuel CNG. Will it make your city any cleaner, then? India generates 62 million tonnes of waste every year. As citizens it may be hard to…

This article is supported by SVP Cities of India Fellowship #PlasticsGottaGo seems to be the rallying cry in cities across India as it is globally, and for obvious reasons too. Attempts to raise awareness about the hazards of plastic waste and its disposal are on an overdrive as climate change and waste management become the key challenges faced by cities. Yet, not everyone thinks that an entirely plastic-free world will be feasible or even desirable. K Ahmed Khan, Managing Director, K.K.Plastic Waste Management Ltd asserts that that they believe in saying 'yes' to plastic but only after ensuring its eco-friendliness,…

On a recent trip driving past North Delhi towards Haryana, I noticed what looked like a mountain range in the distance. This was a pleasant surprise as I was not aware that there were any hills in the region. As I came closer, I realised it was not a range but a single peak. I came still closer and to my horror, realised that this was no natural mountain range. This was a mountain yes, but a mountain of trash! From the side that I was approaching, it looked like one long thin strip of a natural mountain. And then…

Built in the 13th century, Delhi’s Qutb Minar, a UNESCO world heritage site and one of the tallest minarets in the country, is facing stiff competition − from the height of a garbage dump in the national capital. In a recent report, a panel of India’s Parliament noted their observations on landfill sites in Delhi, writing that the “laissez-faire of the civic bodies of Delhi also gets reflected in the fact that the height of Ghazipur landfill site has reached as high as 65 metres which is just eight metres less than the height of the national monument Qutub Minar”. Ghazipur is…

Plastic bans across various Indian states have been in the headlines for over a month now, with Maharashtra abandoning plastic and Tamil Nadu announcing plans to follow suit from January 2019. A partial ban on plastic is in place in five states  in India -- Gujarat, Odisha, West Bengal, Kerala and Goa. Indian cities have joined others around the world in observing a plastic-free July, and there are various initiatives underway to spread awareness and encourage rejection of single-use plastic. However, in this much-needed discourse around plastic and its ill effects, there has been a notable lack of attention given…

Management of liquid waste (sewage and septage) is a huge challenge for urban local bodies in India. Despite efforts in various directions, the scourge of manual scavenging – cleaning of sewer networks, septic tanks and other onsite sanitation systems by human labour – is something that has not been completely eradicated from our cities. Manual scavenging is, in fact, one of those sad dichotomies that continue to haunt our cities, which are, on the one hand, adopting sophisticated technology to upgrade the quality of urban life in many ways, and on the other, grappling with the social and health ramifications…

Those familiar with the social structure in the North Karnataka region will tell you, religious mathas in North Karnataka hold a very powerful place. Epicentres of power and faith, they make an appearance on the list of must- visit places for devotees and politicians alike, albeit for different reasons. One of the defining features for many of them are the community kitchens they run, where thousands of people eat everyday. Largely run on donations from devotees, these kitchens could, however, pose a serious challenge for those in the business of waste management. But even as management of kitchen waste from…

“I have cleared my house of all the plastic bags. I cannot afford to pay Rs 5,000 as fine.” “Madam, they are saying that they will come to check our houses to see if we have plastic. Do you think they will come?” “Everyone on the road is carrying cloth bags today. Who wants to pay fine? ” “Vegetable vendors are telling us to go home and bring a bag. None of them have plastic bags.” “Will it be alright to carry this water bottle? I won’t be caught and fined, right?” The Maharashtra Plastic and Thermocol Products (Manufacture, Usage,…

With Urban India alone generating a gigantic 1.5 lakh metric tonnes per day of Municipal Solid Waste, waste management has grown to become a huge burden in urban India. Despite the existence of strong laws -- Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules, 2016 and Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016 -- cities are stuck at the implementation level. Now, a new report shows that while smaller cities have done a good job of complying with the major clauses of key environmental legislation, larger cities including Bengaluru and New Delhi are yet to satisfy the basic mandate of waste management: source segregation, or in…

A group of ecologists, on what appears to be a boat, are holding an olive ridley turtle. The turtle is seen gasping for air and is trying to breathe through its mouth. A closer look reveals that the turtle’s left nostril is blocked. An ecologist tries to pull out the blockage with a pair of pliers. The turtle, writhing in pain, soon starts bleeding. The next seven minutes are harrowing, but finally ecologists succeed. While the turtle is free, ecologists, much to their dismay, learn that the stuff blocking the turtle’s nose was a plastic straw! This eight-minute-long YouTube video…