Solid Waste - People, Development and Environment Notes

Solid Wastes

• It is an everyday item that is discarded or abandoned.
• Materials like garbage, refuse, sludge from a wastewater treatment plant, or air pollution control facility are considered Solid Wastes.

• These solid wastes could be solid, liquid, semi-solid, or contained gaseous material, resulting from industrial activities, mining operations, and agricultural use.

Statistics

• India generates one hundred fifty thousand tonnes of municipal waste per day.
• According to the World Bank, India's daily waste generation will reach 377,000 tonnes by 2025.
• Sixty-two million tonnes of waste is generated annually in India, less than 60% is collected, and 15% is processed.
• Maharashtra is the largest solid waste producer, and Delhi comes in second place. Sikkim produces the least amount of solid waste.

Types of solid waste depending on their source

1. Municipal waste,
2. Hazardous waste and
3. Biomedical waste or hospital waste.

1. Municipal solid waste

• It consists of household waste, construction from building and demolition debris coming from the building site, sanitation residue, and waste from streets.
• Rising urbanization is the main cause of the rapid increase in municipal solid waste.
• Changing the lifestyle of consumers has led to products being packed in plastics, aluminum foils, and other non-biodegradable items that cause hazards to the environment.

2. Hazardous waste

• Substances containing toxic material from Industries and Hospitals are called Hazardous waste.
• It is toxic and harmful to humans, animals, and plants.
• Four states: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu, are the main contributor to solid waste.
• Old batteries, shoe polish, paint tins, old medicines, and medicine bottles are some of the hazardous waste generated in a household daily.
• The industrial sector generates waste- metal, chemical, paper, pesticide, dye, refining, and rubber goods industries.
• Direct exposure to this waste is fatal to human beings.
• Direct exposure to chemicals in hazardous waste such as mercury and cyanide can be fatal.

3. Hospital waste

• It is generated during testing, diagnosis, immunization, treatment, or research activities
• Chemicals used in hospitals for different treatment and research activities, when not disposed of safely, could be fatal to living beings
• These chemicals include formaldehyde and phenols, used as disinfectants, and mercury, used in thermometers or equipment that measure blood pressure.
• Other hospital waste includes soiled waste, disposables, anatomical waste, cultures, discarded medicines, chemical wastes, disposable syringes, swabs, bandages, body fluids, human excreta, etc. 

Treatment and disposal of solid waste

• Most of the waste generated in India goes to a dumping site.
• This is a harmful and hazardous practice.
• Open dumps are uncovered sites used for dumping waste.
• The waste here is unsegregated, untreated, and uncovered.
• It is the breeding ground for flies and rats that spread disease.
• The rainwater run-off from these dumps contaminates nearby land and water, thereby spreading disease.
• This mode of waste disposal has to be phased out.

2. Landfills

• This form of waste disposal is mostly used in urban areas.
• A pit is dug in the ground.
• The garbage is disposed of in the pit and is covered with soil daily.
• It prevents the breeding of flies and rats.
• Thus, every day, garbage is dumped and sealed.
• In the end, the site is covered with a thick layer of mud.
• After that, the site could be used for a building parking lot or a park.
• This practice is also harmful because the leaching of harmful waste contaminates groundwater and soil.

3. Sanitary landfills

• This form of waste disposal was made keeping in mind the leaching problem.
• Impermeable materials like plastic and clay are used to cover soil.
• But this method is expensive.

4. Incineration plants

• In this form of waste disposal, waste is burned in a large furnace at a very high temperature.
• Recyclable material is segregated first, and then the rest of the material is burnt then.
• But burning garbage is not a clean process as it produces tonnes of toxic ash and pollutes the air and water.

5. Pyrolysis

• In this, combustion takes place in the absence of oxygen.
• It is an alternative to incineration.
• The gas and liquid thus obtained can be used as fuels.

6. Composting

• In this biodegradable waste is decomposed using microorganisms like fungi and bacteria.
• The final product obtained is called humus and is good for growing plants.
• Humus increases the soil's ability to hold water and makes the soil easier to cultivate.
• It helps the soil retain more plant nutrients.
• Hums enrich the soil by returning the nutrients.
• Apart from being clean, cheap, and safe, composting can significantly reduce the amount of disposable garbage.

7. Vermiculture

• In this, earthworms are used in compost.
• These worms break the waste, and the added excreta of the worms make the compost very rich in nutrients.

Government measures

1. Solid waste management rule 2016:
   • It replaced Municipal Solid Wastes (Management and handling) rules, 2000.
   • New rules are applicable beyond municipal areas and have included urban agglomerations, census towns, notified industrial townships, etc.
   • It focused on segregating waste at the source, user collection fee, and the manufacturer's responsibility.
   • Central Monitoring Committee has been constituted under MoEF & CC to monitor the implementation of rules.
2. Ministry of Housing and urban development launched a campaign – 'Compost Banao, compost Apnao' to encourage people to convert kitchen waste into compost.
3. India's first e-waste clinic has been set up in Bhopal, M.P.
4. Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016
   • It defines the thickness of plastic carry bags as 50 microns, which would increase the cost and discourage the use of polythene
   • Andhra Pradesh has launched India's First online waste exchange platform for the scientific disposal of industrial waste.