Solid Waste Management
Waste- Definition & Classification
Any material which is not needed by the owner, producer or processor.

Classification
Domestic waste
Factory waste
Waste from oil factory
E-waste
Construction waste
Agricultural waste
Food processing waste
Bio-medical waste
Nuclear waste
Classification of Wastes
Solid waste- vegetable waste, kitchen waste, household waste etc.
E-waste- discarded electronic devices like computer, TV, music systems etc.
Liquid waste- water used for different industries eg tanneries, distillaries, thermal power plants
Plastic waste- plastic bags, bottles, buckets etc.
Metal waste- unused metal sheet, metal scraps etc.
Nuclear waste- unused materials from nuclear power plants
Solid Waste in India
7.2 million tonnes of hazardous waste
One Sq km of additional landfill area every-year
Rs 1600 crore for treatment & disposal of these wastes
In addition to this industries discharge about 150 million tonnes of high volume low hazard waste every year, which is mostly dumped on open low lying land areas.
Growth of Solid Waste In India
Waste is growing by leaps & bounds
In 1981-91, population of Mumbai increased from 8.2 million to 12.3 million
During the same period, municipal solid waste has grown from 3200 tonnes to 5355 tonne, an increase of 67%
Waste collection is very low for all Indian cities
City like Bangalore produces 2000 tonnes of waste per annum, the ever increasing waste has put pressure on hygienic condition of the city
Waste Collection in India
Primarily by the city municipality
-No gradation of waste product eg bio-degradable, glasses, polybags, paper shreds etc
-Dumps these wastes to the city outskirts
Local raddiwala / kabadiwala (Rag pickers)
-Collecting small iron pieces by magnets
-Collecting glass bottles
-Collecting paper for recycling
MCD- Sophisticated DWM (Delhi Waste Management) vehicle
How solid waste affected us in recent years
Cloudburst in Mumbai (2005) clogged the sewage line due to large no. of plastic bags
Blast in the Bhusan Steel factory at Noida, caused due to imported scrap from Iran
Reduction in the number of migratory birds due to consumption of contaminated foods
Stray animals dying on streets and farmland due to consumption of plastic bags, which blocks the food movement in their stomach
Hazardous / Toxic Waste & Dumping Site
Industrialised countries have waste management problems
Developed countries have strict environment regulation norms
Most attractive option for them- to dump into developing countries
Philadelphia’s Municipal Waste
16 years journey for the cargo ship to eleven countries and four continents
25,000 tonnes of flyash came back to Philadelphia’s garbage dump
Several government refused cargo ships
In 2002, Cargo ship returned back to US
Major Polluting Industries in India
Around 2500 tanneries discharge 24 million cu m of waste water containing high level of dissolved solids and 4,00,000 tonnes of hazardous solid waste
300 distilleries discharge 26 million kilo-litres of spend wash per year containing several pollutants
Thermal power plants discharge huge waste materials
Managing Waste
Recycling: Processing of a waste item into usable forms.
Benefits of recycling:
-Reduce environmental degradation
-Making money out of waste
-Save energy that would have gone into waste handling & product manufacture
Saving through recycling:
-When Al is resmelted- considerable saving in cost
-Making paper from waste saves 50% energy
-Every tonne of recycled glass saves energy equivalent to 100 litres of oil
Recycling not a solution to all problems!
Recycling is not a solution to managing every kind of waste material
For many items recycling technologies are unavailable or unsafe
In some cases, cost of recycling is too high.
Solution: More Profit With Zero Waste
Exchanging output that are considered waste
Waste of one could be input or raw material for others
Evolving a closed system- matter & energy circulate within
System was not designed to be so
The system of exchange evolved in 10 years
Problems in Dealing With Solid Waste
Education & voluntary compliance
Collection of waste
Technological interventions
Institutions & regulatory framework
Absence of mandatory standards for waste reduction
Market action for waste reduction
French aircraft carrier Clemenceau
December 12, 2005, Clemenceau, Ghost ship nobody wants
27,000-ton warship full of asbestos, PCBs, lead, mercury, and other toxic chemicals
Indian scrapyard of Alang (Bhavnagar district, Gujarat) , a place where environmental regulations are lax and workers’ rights are practically nonexistant
In most shipbreaking nations proper waste management is absent. There are no rules and regulations. And where rules exist, they’re unlikely to be enforced.
Basel Convention (1989) is an international treaty which prohibits the export of hazardous waste from rich to poor countries
Greenpeace raised awareness campaigned against the ship in India as well as in France
French President Chirac has announced a dramatic recall of the asbestos-laden warship Clemenceau
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