Waste Management – SWM Rules, EWM Rules, etcNews
May, 18, 2019
Poly-Di-Ketoenamine (PDK): New plastic that could be fully recycled
News
The scientists have created a next-generation plastic that can be fully recycled into new materials of any colour, shape, or form, without loss of performance or quality.
Poly-Di-Ketoenamine (PDK)
A team of researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Berkeley National Laboratory has designed a recyclable plastic called PDK.
The monomers of PDK plastic could be recovered and freed from any compounded additives by placing the material in a highly acidic solution.
It helps to break the bonds between the monomers and separate them from chemical additives.
The recovered PDK monomers can be remade into polymers, and those recycled polymers can form new plastic materials without inheriting the colour or other features of the original material.
They could also upcycle the plastic by adding additional features, such as flexibility.
Why most plastics cannot be recycled?
Most plastics are made of polymers, chains of hydrogen and carbon which are chiefly derived from petroleum products like crude oil.
Polymers are composed of shorter strands called monomers and the process is called polymerization.
To give plastics certain characteristics like toughness, flexibility or color, certain chemicals are added which from strong bonds with the monomers.
While many polymers are thermoplastic, meaning they can be melted down and reused, the additives bonded to them can interfere with the process.
So when plastics are ground up and mixed together for recycling, all those additives make the final product unpredictable and lower quality.
That’s why most recycled plastic is “downcycled” or turned into items like handbags or benches instead of completing the recycling loop.
May, 13, 2019
Basel Convention
News
Nations agreed to add plastic to the Basel Convention, a treaty that regulates movement of hazardous materials from one country to another, in order to combat the dangerous effects of plastic pollution around the world.
Amending the Basel Convention
Parties to the Basel Convention have reached agreement on a legally-binding, globally-reaching mechanism for managing plastic waste.
The Geneva meeting amended the 1989 Basel Convention on the control of hazardous wastes to include plastic waste in a legally-binding framework.
The new amendment would empower developing countries to refuse “dumping plastic waste” by others.
The resolution means contaminated and most mixes of plastic wastes will require prior consent from receiving countries before they are traded, with the exceptions of mixes of PE, PP and PET.
For far too long, developed countries like the U.S. and Canada have been exporting their mixed toxic plastic wastes to developing Asian countries claiming it would be recycled in the receiving country.
What is Basel Convention?
The Basel Convention stands for the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal.
It is an international treaty that was designed to reduce the movements of hazardous waste between nations, and specifically to prevent transfer of hazardous waste from developed to less developed countries (LDCs).
It aims to assist LDCs in environmentally sound management of the hazardous and other wastes they generate.
The Convention was opened for signature on 22 March 1989, and entered into force on 5 May 1992.
As of October 2018, 186 states and the EU are parties to the Convention. Haiti and the United States have signed the Convention but not ratified it.
It does not, however, address the movement of radioactive waste.
The Convention is also intended to minimize the amount and toxicity of wastes generated, to ensure their environmentally sound management.
Why such move?
Instead, much of this contaminated mixed waste cannot be recycled and is instead dumped or burned, or finds its way into the ocean.
Plastic waste pollution has reached “epidemic proportions” with an estimated 100 million tonnes of plastic now found in the oceans.
Even though the U.S. and a few others have not signed the accord, they cannot ship plastic waste to countries that are on board with the deal.
Much of the contaminated mixed waste cannot be recycled and is instead dumped or burned.
Ban on two chemicals
The meeting also undertook to eliminate two toxic chemical groups — Dicofol and Perfluorooctanoic Acid, plus related compounds.
The latter has been used in a wide variety of industrial and domestic applications, including non-stick cookware and food processing equipment, as well as carpets, paper and paints.
Apr, 24, 2019
Kumbh brought Allahabad to verge of an epidemic, says NGT
News
Both the governments, at the Centre and Uttar Pradesh, claimed to have organised a ‘swachh’ — clean — Kumbh in the winter of 2018-19, but the NGT seems to differ.
In fact, the quasi judicial body rang alarm bells about host city Allahabad being on the the verge of an epidemic.
Alarms raised by NGT
While predicting a rise in case of acute diarrhoea, enteric fever, viral hepatisis and cholera, the NGT said responsibility needs to be fixed so an epidemic can be prevented.
Why Kumbh left an epidemic behind?
I. Poor solid waste management
The green bench flagged poor solid waste management during the months-long religious gathering.
The NGT said 60,000 metric tonnes (mt) of solid waste had been collected at nearest SWM Plant which was lying untreated.
Of this, 18,000 mt was generated in Kumbh, but the plant was not operational since September 2018.
II. Polluted Groundwater
Also, the tribunal pointed out that groundwater too has been polluted.
Dirty water from toilets was being collected in kutcha pits.
The base of the soak pits had not been lined and the dirty water could percolate underground.
III. Ganga , the ultimate sufferer
The NGT found that a large number of toilets were constructed very close to the river.
The nearby geotubes had more sewage than it could treat.
The geo tube was not working satisfactorily and 50 per cent of the sewage from the drain was trapped and the rest was going into the Ganga.
IV. No lesson learnt from past
This is not the first Kumbh to have come under criticism for poor managment.
Things were far from perfect during the last Kumbh as well.
The CAG of India’s audit report of the event read, that no effective planning for protection of environment and pollution control was made for the Maha Kumbh.
Apr, 12, 2019
India stares at pile of solar e-waste
CONTEXT
By 2050, India will likely stare at a pile of a new category of electronic waste, namely solar e-waste, says a study made public on Thursday.
Background
Currently, India’s e-waste rules have no laws mandating solar cell manufacturers to recycle or dispose waste from this sector.
No laws mandating disposal; volume estimated at 1.8 million tonnes by 2050.
“India’s PV (photovoltaic) waste volume is estimated to grow to 200,000 tonnes by 2030 and around 1.8 million tonnes by 2050,” said the study by Bridge To India (BTI), an energy consultancy firm.
India’s achievement in solar sector
India is among the leading markets for solar cells in the world, buoyed by the government’s commitment to install 100 GW of solar power by 2022.
So far, India has installed solar cells for about 28 GW and this is largely from imported solar PV cells.
Solar cell waste
Solar cell modules are made by processing sand to make silicon, casting silicon ingots, using wafers to create cells and then assembling them to make modules.
India’s domestic manufacturers are largely involved in assembling cells and modules.
These modules are 80% glass and aluminium, and non-hazardous.
Other materials used, including polymers, metals, metallic compounds and alloys, and are classified as potentially hazardous, says the study.
Handling of solar waste
India is poorly positioned to handle PV waste as it doesn’t yet have policy guidelines on the same
a lack of a policy framework is coupled with the fact that even basic recycling facilities for laminated glass and e-waste are unavailable.
Despite the e-waste regulation being in place for over seven years, only less than 4% of estimated e-waste is recycled in the organised sector as per the latest estimates from the Central Pollution Control Board
Conclusion
While the solar sector continues to grow robustly, there is no clarity on solar waste management in India.
Apr, 09, 2019
Biomedical Waste Management in India: Still a looming concern
News
The seemingly endless issue of biomedical waste management (BMWM) in India has necessitated the MoEFCC to amend and enforce the “parent rules” of 2016, yet again.
Combating the issues has multifaceted humanitarian and environmental challenges for various communities of the country, and therefore, needs immediate responsiveness for our common world.
BMWM (Amendment) Rules, 2018
All bedded healthcare facilities (HCFs) irrespective of their number of beds have to regularly update the BMWM register
HCFs which have beds less than 10 shall have to comply with the output discharge standard for liquid waste generated, latest by December 31, 2019
Corresponding duties of Ministry of Defence officials as per Schedule III: A report needs to be submitted to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) after the inspection and monitoring of HCFs, Medical Inspection (MI) rooms and AFMS.
In March 2018, the BMW amendments delve into extension of dates to phase out — chlorinated plastic bags (excluding blood bags) and gloves etc.
Scenario of bio-medical waste management in India
According to the CPCB annual report of 2016, total quantity of BMW generation in the country is approximately 517 tonnes per day (TPD).
To grapple with these manifold increase in generation of BMW, 199 common bio-medical waste treatment facilities (CBWTFs) are in operation and 23 are under construction (CPCB, 2017).
Safe and effective management of waste is not only a legal necessity but also a social responsibility.
Ineffective management
Nevertheless, these amendments are yet to be monitored and enforced on the ground.
Despite of having the BMWM legislation since 1998, followed by the changes in the recent past, many regions of the country still have dearth of systematic efforts to mitigate risks associated with such waste.
The compliance of rules is still an ongoing process in the country and law in many states is writ large.
The legal obligation has been reduced to paper formality only and there is a lack of concern, motivation, awareness and cost factor in proper biomedical waste management.
Way Forward
Managing healthcare waste requires effective knowledge not only among those who produce the healthcare waste but also among those who handles it.
So, to achieve this, HCFs and regulatory authorities have to take stringent measures in order to ensure safe disposal of BMW in the country.
To state a few:
training and awareness programme for healthcare personnel needs to be conducted;
legal actions against defaulting HCFs and ill-operated CBWTFs is obligatory;
self-regulatory mechanism for monitoring and implementation for waste management should be encouraged and
well timed sufficient allocation of funds through central funding from National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) should be ensured.
Mar, 25, 2019
Galapagos Islands
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Galapagos Islands
Not Much
News
Tonnes of plastic waste wash up on the shores of the Galapagos Islands where microparticles end up in the stomachs of species found only in the Pacific archipelago 1,000 km west of mainland Ecuador.
Galapagos Islands
The Galapagos Islands an archipelago of volcanic islands part of the Republic of Ecuador, distributed on either side of the Equator in the Pacific Ocean surrounding the centre of the Western Hemisphere.
The island inspired Charles Darwin’s Theory of evolution and was his field of study.
The Islands and their surrounding waters form the Galapagos Province of Ecuador, the Galapagos National Park, and the Galapagos Marine Reserve.
UNESCO recognised the islands as a World Heritage Site and as a biosphere reserve.
Menace of Microplastics
Sun rays and the ocean’s saltwater break down bottles, bags, lids, containers and fishing nets.
The tiny plastic pieces become part of the food chain.
Those microparticles, often from waste discarded in big cities from other countries and even continents, are perhaps one of the greatest threats to the iguanas, tortoises, birds and fish of the Galapagos.
More than 90 percent of the waste gathered doesn’t come from Galapagos activities, but rather from South America, Central America and even a great deal of waste with Asian branding.
Mar, 18, 2019
UN meet dilutes Indian plan to phase out single-use plastics
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Issues related to plastic waste disposal in India
News
An ambitious resolution piloted by India to phase out single-use plastics by 2025, was watered down at the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) that concluded recently in Nairobi.
Deadline pushed back
The final declaration on March 15 removed the firm timelines and edited out the “decisively” and only committed to a “reduction by 2030.”
At the World Environment Day summit on June 5, 2018 India had pledged to eliminate single-use plastics from India by 2022.
This pushed several States — notably Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh — to enforce previous commitments to ban plastic bags and similar disposables.
Ahead of the UNEA, the UN secretariat had invited inputs from member states to forge a common declaration regarding addressing a host of environmental challenges.
What concerns India?
A CPCB estimate in 2015 says that Indian cities generate 15,000 tonnes of plastic waste daily and about 70% of the plastic produced in the country ends up as waste.
Seventeen States have plastic bans, on paper.
Experts have rued the inadequacy of collection and recycling systems to address the burgeoning plastic waste problem.
Reasons cited
The UNEA lauded India for playing a key role in advocating a time-bound ban on single use plastic.
A person privy to negotiations told that India didn’t work enough to garner international support to carry it all the way through.
Curbing Nitrogen pollution
Along with plastic, India also piloted a resolution on curbing nitrogen pollution.
The global nitrogen-use efficiency is low, resulting in pollution by reactive nitrogen which threatens human health, ecosystem services, contributes to climate change and stratospheric ozone depletion.
Only a small proportion of the plastics produced globally are recycled, with most of it damaging the environment and aquatic bio-diversity.
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Ministry plugs loophole that allowed plastic waste import
Mar, 07, 2019
Ministry plugs loophole that allowed plastic waste import
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Features of the Amendment rules
Issues related to plastic waste disposal in India
News
Solid plastic waste has been prohibited from import into the country including in Special Economic Zones (SEZ) and by Export Oriented Units (EOU) said the MoEFCC.
The change in law was part of the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management & Transboundary Movement) Amendment Rules, 2019.
Salient features of the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management& Transboundary Movement) Amendment Rules, 2019:
Solid plastic waste has been prohibited from import into the country including in Special Economic Zones (SEZ) and by Export Oriented Units (EOU).
Exporters of silk waste have now been given exemption from requiring permission from the Ministry.
Electrical and electronic assemblies and components manufactured in and exported from India, if found defective can now be imported back into the country, within a year of export, without obtaining permission from MoEFCC.
Industries which do not require consent under Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974 and Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981, are now exempted from requiring authorization also under the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management & Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016, provided that hazardous and other wastes generated by such industries are handed over to the authorized actual users, waste collectors or disposal facilities.
Why such move?
In spite of having a significant plastic pollution load of its own, and a ban on plastic waste imports, imported PET bottles from abroad for processing SEZ.
The influx of PET bottles was quadrupled from 2017 to 2018.
Indian firms are importing plastic scrap from China, Italy, Japan and Malawi for recycling.
India consumes about 13 million tonnes of plastic and recycles only about 4 million tonnes.
To incentivise domestic plastic recycling units, the government had banned the import of plastic waste, particularly PET bottles, in 2015.
In 2016, an amendment allowed such imports as long as they were carried out by agencies situated in SEZs.
Feb, 27, 2019
Cities at crossroads: Small town, cleaner future
Case
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016
This article analyses how big cities can learn waste management from small cities and towns
NEWS
CONTEXT
Small and mid-size cities and towns of India are showing the way on how to manage solid waste by getting communities to segregate waste and keeping the waste streams separate.
The case study of Suryapet
The earliest and the best success story was of Suryapet, a city in Telangana, located 136 km east of Hyderabad, with a population of a little over one lakh.
A single individual, S A Khadar, the commissioner of Suryapet municipal corporation, demonstrated personal leadership which made a big difference.
He managed all of the Suryapet’s wet and dry waste (32 tonnes daily at that time) on a half-acre site within the city, earning a gross income of Rs 1 lakh per month from vermi-composting and recycling.
He began by winning the hearts of his sanitary workers by prompt satisfaction of minor demands, such as granting leave and/or reassignment of workplaces.
Next, he wooed the residents, one mohalla or street or commercial area at a time, by organising daily meetings on morning rounds from six to nine am before beginning his office work. Residential pockets that gave 100 per cent unmixed waste earned token gifts.
The commissioner got banks to fund new tractor-trailers (which can unload waste mechanically) for self-help groups by guaranteeing their monthly repayments to banks from the city payments to their SHGs for waste collection services.
Open drain cleaning was done in the afternoons. Soggy silt went directly into a wheelie-bin and then into a dedicated leak-proof collection vehicle which unloaded the silt and the debris for widening the road shoulders of all radial roads.
The Suryapet experience clearly shows that citizens can be incentivised to give wet and dry wastes unmixed when they see clear administrative will and primary collection vehicles designed to accept and transport wastes unmixed.
The case study of Karjat
Within two days of joining, Kokare commissioner of the municipal council of Karjat, strictly enforced Maharashtra’s ban on plastic carry bags. These are now replaced by sari-cloth bags which cost Rs 6 per bag.
Handcart vendors use bags made out of newspapers.
What is amazing is how he persuaded Karjat residents, already enjoying doorstep waste collection, to cooperate in giving 36 kinds of waste separately on different days of the week! This is probably a global first.
Secret of success
The secret of the success of Kokare and Khadar, is passion and daily personal supervision, both going around the city every morning before office hours to meet, persuade and exhort citizens to cooperate.
In Karjat, after initial warnings, doorstep collectors refuse to collect mixed waste and also report the person. The same evening, an official comes and grills the person on where they dumped their uncollected mixed waste.
Such intense individual effort is especially required at the start. Once word gets around, cooperation is easier.
Other examples
In Namakkal (population of 55,000) in Tamil Nadu, pushcart collection workers have been manually separating mixed waste into wet and dry, daily at the doorstep of each household, rather than attempt behaviour change.
Alappuzha in Kerala was recently recognised by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) for its decentralised system of waste management.
In these and many more small towns, the secret of success is meticulous micro-planning, committed leadership at the administrative level and receptive and engaged communities. The objective is clear — a litter-free, bin-free and dump-free city.
Lessons for metro cities
Big cities scoff at small towns leading the way and claim that their own waste volumes are unmanageable. But even in large metropolitan cities, populations of most wards are smaller than of these towns. Decentralisation and effective use of delegated power at the ward level is crucial if micro-planning and implementation is to work with cooperation from RWAs. Only then can we find a collective solution to the challenges of solid waste management in our larger cities.
Feb, 25, 2019
Deodorizing waste
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Increasing pollution due to untreated waste and need of waste management as a policy issue
NEWS
CONTEXT
India’s cities are drowning in waste — but no one is bothered.
Effects of contaminated water
The World Bank estimates that more than a fifth of all communicable diseases in India (21%) are caused by contaminated water.
It attributes one in ten deaths in India to diseases or infections directly or indirectly transmitted through water.
Over 500 children die every day in India due to diarrhoeal diseases.
Nitrogen, a growing pollutant
According to a study by the Indian Nitrogen Group, the amount of reactive nitrogen in a bulk of the water bodies in India is already twice the limit prescribed by WHO.
Nitrogen pollution from untreated sewage now outstrips nitrogen pollution from the Indian farmer’s urea addiction.
Clean India’s addition to nitrogen pollution problem
Under the mission, in the past four years alone, over nine crore toilets have been constructed.
Of these, only 60 lakh are in urban areas, where one assumes they are connected to some sort of sewage system.
A study done by the Centre for Science and Environment in 30 cities in Uttar Pradesh found that only 28% of toilets in these cities were connected to a sewage system.
The rest will be generating fecal sludge, sewage and septage which has no place to go.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), 63% of urban sewage flowing into rivers is untreated.
Up to a third of the installed sewage treatment capacity is fully or partly dysfunctional
Sewage management is missing from agenda
Of the 99 cities in the ‘Smart Cities’ mission, which are collectively spending ₹2 lakh crore over five years (from 2015), only 2.4% of the money is going to be spent on waste management.
AMRUT covers a much larger spread — 500 so-called ‘mission cities’ across the country. Of these, only 217 pitched for a sewage treatment plant as an AMRUT project.
No access to water
According to NITI Aayog’s composite water management index report released last year, 75% of households do not have access to drinking water on premises, 70% households lack piped water (potable or otherwise) and as many as 20 cities will effectively use up all available water resources by 2020!
Conclusion
Sewage and waste need to come centre stage in our policy debates. Elections may be fought on ‘bijli, Sadak, paani’ (power, roads, water) but no election is fought over naali (drain). Unless that happens, we run the real risk of eventually either choking or being poisoned by our own waste.
Jan, 30, 2019
Waste-to-Energy plants that use solid waste as feedstock pose threat to environment
degradation, environmental impact assessment.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Basic knowledge of Waste to Energy plants.
The news-card analyses issues and challenges with Waste to Energy plants in India, in a brief manner.
Context
Waste to Energy (WtE) plants in our cities, using inadequately segregated municipal waste as feedstock, are highly dangerous because of the toxic gases and particulates they spew when they burn mixed waste in the process of incineration.
The Okhla WtE Plant Case
Residents of Okhla and surrounding areas in Delhi have been protesting that the WtE plant in their vicinity is not complying with the stipulations of National Green Tribunal (NGT).
It is not too much for an urban locality with houses, hospitals, schools and shops to want no industrial polluter in their midst.
With its location within 30 metres of the residential areas, emissions remain a major issue with the residents.
The plant was slapped a fine of Rs 25 lakh in February 2017 by the NGT but many questions about air quality standards in the area remain unanswered, including why the plant spews soot and ash in the neighbourhood.
Latest Protest
The authorities are considering the expansion of this WtE plant from 16 MW to 40 MW.
The latest protests by the residents at a public hearing were reported in the press only a few days ago.
The residents claim that the plant’s original Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) issued to IL&FS bears no resemblance to the plant now in operation.
A new EIA has been filed for the proposed expansion, and they are apprehensive about the proposal to add two boilers.
WtE Plants in India: Lazy solution to solid waste management
There are five municipal WtE plants operational in India with a total capacity to produce 66.4 MW electricity per day.
Of this, the lion’s share — 52 MW per day — is generated in Delhi by its three existing plants.
There is also talk of setting up a new WtE plant with a capacity of 25 MW at Tehkhand in South-East Delhi.
The bandwagon is rolling on with cities across different states vying for WtE plants as a quick and lazy solution to the complex challenge of solid waste management.
Issues with WtE Plants
WtE plants in India burn mixed waste
The presence of chlorinated hydrocarbons like PVC results in the release of dioxins and furans when the waste is burnt at less than 850 degree C.
Appropriate filtering mechanisms need to be installed to control such dangerous emissions.
Dioxins and furans are known to be carcinogenic and can lead to impairment of immune, endocrine, nervous and reproductive systems.
2. They are extremely difficult and costly to measure, as the experience of Okhla shows.
In the past, joint inspections involving the residents have shown that the plant was being operated without the adequate use of activated charcoal to filter out dioxins, furans and mercury from the emissions.
3. Serious pollutants of air and water
Even when incineration takes place under optimal conditions, large amounts of flue gases, mercury vapour and lead compounds are released.
There is always about 30 per cent residue from incineration in the form of slag (bottom ash) and fly ash (particulate matter), which are also known to be serious pollutants of air and water.
WtE plants are being phased out in the West
Even people living in the neighbourhood of the best-maintained plants in the West are said to be prone to higher levels of cancer and other illnesses.
That is why WtE plants are being phased out in the West.
Unfortunately, while the clamour for WtE plants is growing in India, their operations are neither strictly maintained nor adequately monitored.
4. Inefficient in generating energy
WtE plants in India are also inefficient in generating energy.
Municipal waste in India has a very high biodegradable (wet) waste content ranging anywhere between 60 and 70 per cent of the total, compared with 30 per cent in the West.
This gives our waste a high moisture content and low calorific value.
Also, since Indian households have traditionally been recycling their waste such as paper, plastic, cardboard, cloth, rubber, etc, to kabadiwalas, this further lowers the calorific value of our waste.
Challenge of segregation at source
India’s Solid Waste Management policy requires that wet and dry wastes should not be mixed so that only non-compostable and non-recyclable wastes with at least 1,500 kcal/kg should reach WtE plants.
Such waste comprises only 10 to 15 per cent of the total waste.
The challenge of segregation at source is compounded by the municipal governments themselves when they use compacters to reduce the transport cost of the waste.
Compacting compresses the waste and makes even gross segregation at the plant site impossible.
In the absence of adequate feedstock of non-compostable and non-recyclable waste, it becomes necessary to use auxiliary fuel, adding to the cost of operating the plants.
Waste to energy solutions
Private companies (mostly foreign) are keenly hawking “waste to energy solutions” to handle our growing volumes of urban waste.
Our urban local bodies, which bear the responsibility for solid waste management in our cities, are easily misguided into adopting these “solutions”.
They are themselves reluctant to make an effort at keeping wet and dry wastes, recyclable and non-recyclable wastes, unmixed.
They find WtE plants an easy option to legitimise the burning of mixed waste.
Way Forward
Municipal authorities should be made aware that WtE technologies are being phased out in the West.
They should not be allowed unless the waste offered meets the criterion specified by the SWM Rules 2016.
A crucial element of enforcement will be to first ensure that the waste is not mixed at the source of generation and then that the handling of waste is in unmixed streams.
Even where outsourcing contracts clearly specify that handling must be in unmixed streams, there should be strict penalties for non-compliance.
WtE plants using municipal solid waste from Indian cities as feedstock pose a serious threat to our health and environment.
We must explore low cost options such as composting and bio-methanation.
First things first: No mixing of waste at the point of generation.
Jan, 22, 2019
Global alliance of companies to eliminate plastic waste launched
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
AEPW
Issues related to plastic waste.
News
An alliance of global companies launched a new organisation to help eliminate plastic waste, especially in the ocean.
Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW)
The AEPW comprises of about 30 companies, which pledged over $1 billion to eliminate plastic waste across the world.
The aim is to develop solutions to mitigate plastic pollution and promote a circular economy by utlising used plastics.
The Alliance has been working with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development as a founding strategic partner.
Designed as a non-profit organization, the Alliance includes companies from across North and South America, Europe, Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa as well as the Middle East are part of the Alliance.
Member companies include those that make, use, sell, process, collect and recycle plastics, as well as chemical and plastic manufacturers, consumer goods companies, retailers, converters, and waste management companies, also called the plastics value chain.
From India, Reliance Industries will advance efforts towards a sustainable future.
Focus areas of AEPW
Infrastructure development to collect and manage waste and increase recycling
Innovation to advance and scale up new technologies that make recycling and recovering plastics easier and create value from post-use plastics
Education and engagement of governments, businesses, and communities to mobilize action;
Clean-up of concentrated areas of plastic waste in the environment, particularly the major conduits of waste, such as rivers, that carry land-based waste to the ocean.
Dec, 17, 2018
No time left to waste on waste
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From the UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Bioremediation
Issues related to waste management and how to tackle this problem seeing urbanization trend in India
Context
Waste management problem in Delhi
Delhi’s garbage woes have been hurtling towards some sort of an endgame ever since a portion of the landfill at Ghazipur, on the city’s eastern edge, collapsed onto an adjoining road and buried two people in September 2017
A temporary ban on dumping at the site was immediately announced, but the Ghazipur garbage mountain is already nearly as tall as the Qutub Minar, as the Supreme Court caustically observed recently
With the quest for another dumpsite going nowhere (as nobody wants a mound of garbage next to their neighbourhood), there is no clarity yet on what to do with the thousands of tonnes of solid waste Delhi generates every day
Garbage problem set to rise
The impasse in Delhi is a reflection of India’s troubling relationship with waste
India’s cities already generate over 150,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste every day, with Mumbai being the world’s fifth most wasteful city
The waste heaps that dot the edges of India’s cities are set to double in size by 2025
Only one-third of the waste undergoes even rudimentary treatment, according to the urban ministry and hardly any of it is segregated, which would make processing easier
As India’s economic growth accelerates, the garbage problem would only get bigger, unless immediate solutions are found to delink growth from garbage generation
According to the Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment, cities are already beginning to run out of land on which to dump their waste and have begun throwing it in the backyards of smaller towns, suburbs and villages
Thus, garbage may soon become a flashpoint that sets off recurrent conflict across the urban landscape
How India plans to deal with the waste?
The only big national idea on offer has been to incinerate or burn the garbage. That is what the NITI Aayog had proposed in its medium-term three-year vision for the country, which was released in August 2017
By burning the waste, a small amount of energy could also be produced, at least in theory
Currently, about 3% of urban India’s daily garbage output gets fed into waste-to-energy incinerators
A minuscule amount of energy is generated, but there has been very little debate on whether incinerators work in the Indian context
Problems with incineration
Unlike the Western world, a large chunk of India’s waste is still organic kitchen waste—almost 40% of the total volume
Since segregation of waste is yet to become a reality, incineration is a highly inefficient solution
In the Indian context, there is also very little certainty on whether the harmful gases, which are a byproduct of incineration, are adequately contained and treated
Using bioremediation
Apart from incineration, the other big idea that several cities have tried is bioremediation, which effectively involves the use of living micro-organisms to degrade the contaminants in a landfill into less toxic forms
While the technology is somewhat effective in dealing with existing landfills, in an ideal future, the waste processing chain should abolish the need for a landfill to begin with
Various Indian cities have set on aim to build a “zero landfill” city
Segregation and composting are a big part of the mix of solutions that are being implemented
Their experience in inducing collective action among ordinary citizens to segregate waste may hold important lessons for India’s large cities
Way forward
Global examples show that the national mood changes under the influence of an adequate trigger, which makes a radical change in collective behaviour possible
When PM Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Mission, the hope was that it would serve as India’s trigger. Four years down the line, nothing much has changed
Indians should start demanding clean and healthy cities as a basic right and governments must step up and deliver that basic human need
Dec, 14, 2018
India’s 'Help Us Green' wins UN Climate Action Award
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Help Us Green, UN Climate Action Award
Problem of ceremonial wastes in India and its disposal
News
Context
Indian group ‘Help Us Green’ has received a UN Climate Action Award.
Help Us Green is based in four cities of Uttar Pradesh and got the award in the Women for Results category.
Why awarded?
It is doing its part to clean up the Ganges by recycling flowers from temples and mosques.
It gives marginalized women a chance to earn livelihoods and be respected in their communities through collecting temple ceremonial flowers tossed into the Ganges and turning them into sustainable incense.
Over eight million tonnes of flowers are discarded in the river every year for religious purposes. This is contributing to the pollution of the Ganges, which provides drinking water for over 420 million people.
Help Us Green
Help Us Green has come up with the world’s first profitable solution to the monumental temple waste problem: flowercycling.
Women working with Help Us Green collect floral-waste daily from temples.
The waste is up-cycled to produce organic fertilizers, natural incense and biodegradable packaging material.
Till date, 11,060 metric tonnes of temple-waste has been flowercycled and 110 metric tonnes of chemical pesticides that enter the river through temple waste have been offset.
So is the income of 73 manual scavenger families has increased at least six-fold.
A total of 365 families have been impacted by Help Us Green through increased living standards and stable incomes.
By 2021, Help Us Green, which plans to expand to Bangladesh, and Nepal, aims to provide livelihoods to 5,100 women and recycle 51 tonnes of temple waste daily.
Nov, 28, 2018
The three bin solution
Mains Paper 2: Governance | Government policies & interventions for development in various sectors & issues arising out of their design & implementation
From the UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Various laws for waste management in India and the need for segregating hazardous waste from household waste
Context
Need for better solid waste management
With changing lifestyles, our homes are awash with different chemicals and products which, often without us being aware, are corrosive, explosive, flammable or toxic
These are dangerous wastes that need to be kept out of the wet and dry waste streams
They are harmful not only for our health but also for the environment if not disposed of properly
Lead exposure risk
Leftover paints and varnishes are examples of common polluting wastes in homes
They often contain toxic heavy metals and flammable solvents
Lead, a highly toxic metal, is found in lead-based paints which are often used on walls, toys and art supplies
Young children are particularly vulnerable as even low levels of lead exposure can cause cognitive disabilities in children
WHO lists lead exposure as one of the top 10 environmental health threats globally
Many countries have phased out lead from their paints. In November 2016
India brought in a regulation which allowed a maximum of 90 ppm lead content in paints
A study by Toxic Links published in October 2018 shows that the concentration of lead in paints manufactured by small and medium enterprises in India remains very high
They found paint samples with as high as 199,345 ppm lead content — more than 2,000 times the maximum limit
Rules for safe disposal of different kinds of wastes
There are rules galore for domestic hazardous waste with quite a bit of overlap in coverage for different types of waste
Domestic hazardous waste comes under the ambit of Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules 2016
Hazardous waste generated by industries and large offices is separately covered under the Hazardous Waste Rules 2016
Some biomedical waste is included in the definition of domestic hazardous waste, but only waste from healthcare establishments is covered under the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules 2016
Similarly E-waste Management Rules 2016 are applicable to e-waste including computers, printers, TV, fluorescent and other mercury-containing lamps, while lead acid batteries from home inverters and cars come under Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules 2001
Weak implementation
It is the responsibility of the municipal authorities under the SWM Rules 2016, to collect hazardous waste quarterly or periodically, and/or set up deposit centres, where such waste can be dropped off by waste generators
The authorities must also ensure safe storage of the waste and its transportation to the hazardous waste disposal facility
But the rules lose their significance because there are hardly any deposit centres for domestic hazardous waste
The Biomedical Waste Management Rules 2016 require safe disposal of only healthcare waste
While only 10-25 per cent of biomedical waste is infectious or hazardous, if not properly handled, it presents the physical, chemical and microbiological risk to the general population as well as those who handle this waste
Discarded hazardous medical waste leads to the unintended release of drug-resistant microorganisms in the environment
Drug resistance increasing
According to the WHO, in 2016, 490,000 persons developed multi-drug resistant TB globally and drug resistance is starting to complicate the fight against HIV and malaria, as well
A WHO report also shows that there were 65,000 cases of multidrug-resistant and Rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis in India in 2017
Way forward
With changing lifestyles, our homes are awash with different chemicals and products which, often without us being aware, are corrosive, explosive, flammable or toxic
These are dangerous wastes that need to be kept out of the wet and dry waste streams
They are harmful not only for our health but also for the environment if not disposed of properly
People should start keeping three bins for waste: Dry, wet and hazardous
Oct, 24, 2018
Recycle and build
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Need of recycling C&D waste in India and ways for doing that
Context
Problem of construction & demolition waste
The growing menace of construction and demolition (C&D) waste in Indian cities has a harmful effect on the environment and public health
C&D Waste Management Rules were notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change in March 2016
For these to be translated into action, municipal corporations, municipalities and other urban local bodies need to prepare waste management plans, notify bye-laws with penalties for non-compliance, and put in place enforcement mechanisms
Facilitating the recycling of C&D waste has to be an important plank of the waste management plans
Steps that need to be taken
Waste generators must be made aware of the nature of the hazard posed by C&D waste as cooperation from the community
Compared with municipal solid waste, it causes more traffic congestion and also pollution from dust
People must understand that as water gets trapped in the debris, this becomes a breeding ground for mosquitoes and no amount of spraying can reach the hidden pockets of water
They also have to be made aware that as lakes, stormwater drains, ponds and other water bodies get choked, the city becomes more vulnerable to floods
Dumping C&D waste in lakes for encroachment, a common practice in large cities, also results in loss of wetlands which are necessary for water purification
Unmixed discards can almost all be put to use
The deconstruction of buildings enables a much larger recovery of unmixed materials for reuse than mechanical demolition
The Report on Resource Efficiency in the Indian Construction Sector by GIZ and Development Alternatives (2015) points out that manual demolition by hammer and pickaxe is the norm in northern India, primarily due to the higher rates of reuse of building materials, especially good quality whole bricks, and the low wage rate
All waste from construction and/or demolition for large projects should be stacked on-site unmixed, with different heaps for soil, stones, bricks, cementitious waste, plastics, wood, etc to make reuse and recycling easier
This can only be accomplished with community cooperation and oversight
A proactive effort on the part of the municipalities is called for to keep C&D waste off the roads, pavements and vacant sites and encourage its transport to recycling units
The use of pavement for storing C&D materials should be limited to 2-3 months or until completion of the first slab
Thereafter progressive escalation of the ground rent should be explored, to discourage on-site stacking of construction materials
There is a need for public discussion on measures to ensure the beneficial uses of vacant sites without harming the rights of site owners but supporting the rights of neighbours for a pollution-free environment
Municipalities must also remove unauthorised dumpsites on vacant land — public or private — while recovering the cost of transporting the waste to the recycling plants through a penalty from the owner
Property tax on unfenced vacant sites should be the same as the tax on a ground floor building on a similar plot area, and interest must be charged on tax dues
Unfenced plots, in any case, should be periodically cleaned or fenced for nuisance-proofing by the municipal corporation and charges added to property tax dues
Way forward
Government construction works can set an example by using the recycled products as prescribed in Sec 9 (4) of C&D Waste Management Rules (2016)
Following international practice, it is important to set standards and have quality certification for the recycled materials so that more and more builders are encouraged to use these materials and contribute to the cause of sustainable urban development
Sep, 11, 2018
Ocean Cleanup team heads to the Pacific
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Great Pacific Garbage Patch, Photodegradation
Ocean Cleanup Project and its strategy
News
The Ocean Cleanup Project
A supply ship towing a long floating boom designed to clean ocean plastic has set sail from San Francisco for a test run ahead of a trip to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
The ambitious project by The Ocean Cleanup, a Dutch non-profit group, hopes to clean up half of the garbage patch within five years once all systems are deployed.
The supply vessel was towing a 600 meter-long boom device dubbed System 001, designed to contain floating ocean plastic so it can be scooped up and recycled.
The system includes a tapered three-meter skirt to catch plastic floating just below the surface.
The main mission is to show that it works, and hopefully then in a few months from now, the first plastics will arrive back into port, which means that it becomes proven technology.
About Great Pacific Garbage Patch
The patch, also described as the Pacific trash vortex, is a gyre of marine debris particles in the central North Pacific Ocean discovered between 1985 and 1988.
The patch is characterized by exceptionally high relative pelagic concentrations of plastic, chemical sludge, and other debris that have been trapped by the currents of the North Pacific Gyre.
It consists primarily of an increase in suspended, often microscopic, particles in the upper water column.
The patch has one of the highest levels known of plastic particulates suspended in the upper water column.
Risk of Photo Degradation
As a result, it is one of several oceanic regions where researchers have studied the effects and impact of plastic photodegradation in the neustonic layer of water.
The photodegraded plastic disintegrates into ever smaller pieces while remaining a polymer. This process continues down to the molecular level.
Some plastics decompose within a year of entering the water, leaching potentially toxic chemicals such as bisphenol A, PCBs, and derivatives of polystyrene.
As it disintegrates, the plastic ultimately becomes small enough to be ingested by aquatic organisms that reside near the ocean’s surface.
Aug, 29, 2018
Cities at crossroads: No more cover-ups
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Increasing number of landfill sites of waste in Indian cities and their ill effects on human health as well as environment
Context
Managing solid waste in cities
There are two separate challenges of solid waste management in our cities
One, managing the continuous flow of solid waste on a daily basis
Two, dealing with the legacy of neglect which has resulted in garbage hills having been built up at dumpsites that were meant for waste processing and landfills
Lanfills: Overburdened by garbage
The sites for landfills were originally located outside of the cities, but as the cities have expanded the dumpsites are now almost inside the cities
It is estimated that more than 10,000 hectares of urban land is locked in these dumpsites in India
Delhi’s open dumps at Ghazipur (69 metres high), Okhla (55 metres high) and Bhalswa (56 metres high), for example, are all much higher than the permissible height limit of up to 20 metres
They are also way past their capacity for holding the amount of waste for which they were set up
Bad effects of landfills
In the absence of exposure to air, the high-rises of rotting mixed waste on these sites generate methane (a greenhouse gas) and other landfill gases which contribute to global warming
They also produce leachate (liquid generated by airless waste), which pollutes groundwater
Frequent outbreaks of fire at the dumpsites lead to air pollution
Using bio-remediation and bio-mining to get rid of waste
Bio-remediation and bio-mining are clearly specified as the first choice under Rule 15 (zj) of The Rules for the Safe Treatment of Legacy Waste in all open dumpsites and existing operational dumpsites in India
The low-cost solution of bioremediation to remove the garbage hills and their lingering ill effects permanently achieves near-zero emission of harmful gases (such as methane, hydrogen sulphide, and ammonia) and leachate
In rapid bioremediation method, the hill is terraced, grooved and then slashed to form high slices to let air into the waste and drain out leachate
Each heap is turned weekly, four times to ensure aeration of all parts of the waste and sprayed with composting microbes to accelerate biological decomposition
After four turnings, there is about 40 per cent volume reduction in the waste as the organic fraction of the original waste is degraded biologically by the bioculture
Specific microbes are also used for leachate treatment. Once the waste is stabilised, it is ready for bio-mining
Bio-mining efforts include loosening thin surface layers of the garbage hill and forming this into windrows before screening
These fractions can then be used for different purposes — for compost, road sub-grade, making RDF (Refuse Derived Fuel) pellets, recycling plastics, or inerts for landfills
Why is this method useful for growing cities?
The most valuable part of this exercise is that the land which was hosting waste dumps is now fully recovered for alternate uses
Since it is very hard to win local acceptance for new waste processing sites, the recovered land can be used for waste management
Way Forward
Capping is being projected in Indian cities as a solution to the challenges posed by our unlined open dumps even where bio-remediation and bio-mining are feasible and desirable
The Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Central Pollution Control Board should swing into action immediately to issue guidelines on the capping of dumpsites, taking account of health, environment and financial perspectives
Jun, 27, 2018
Plastic-free India is a nudge away
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Plastic Waste Management Rules (2016), Nudge theory
The editorial discusses how nudge theory can be implemented in reducing usage of plastic
Context
Change in Plastic Waste Management Rules
The Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change amended the Plastic Waste Management Rules (2016)
According to the amendment, manufacturers, suppliers, and sellers of plastic (and plastic products) across the nation will now be required to phase out, over a period of two years, all such products which have no alternative use or are non-recyclable and non-energy recoverable
This move was preceded by a state-wide ban in Maharashtra on the manufacture, usage, sale (wholesale and retail), distribution, storage and import of plastic bags and all disposable products made out of plastic
Impact of the ban on average Indian citizen
To the people employed in the industry, it could mean the shutdown of factories and potential job losses
To the consumer, it would mean choosing between alternatives that are either too expensive, impractical or not as easily available
The unrealistic timeline for the implementation of the plastic ban has caught all stakeholders unawares, making it extremely difficult to comply with
An end-to-end approach to eradicate the use and sale of plastic
NUDGING CONSUMERS
The government can nudge rather than coerce citizens to demand and use less plastic
A “nudge”, as Nobel laureate Richard Thaler defines it, is any aspect of the choice architecture that alters people’s behavior in a predictable way without forbidding any options or significantly changing their economic incentives
One way of doing this would be to give discounts to customers who bring their own bags, or reward points for not requesting a plastic bag—as opposed to fining, penalizing, or charging high prices
Normative social influence bias can be leveraged to nudge Indian citizens away from plastic
This bias taps into people’s intrinsic urge to conform and be liked by those around them
Another nudge, which has been extremely successful globally in donation scenarios, is the “opt-out model”
Here, customers would by default be considered as opted-in for non-plastic items, forcing them to manually opt-out to choose otherwise
Way forward
In 2025, it is estimated that the annual input of plastic waste from land to ocean will be over 16 million metric tons—almost 100 bags of plastic per foot of coastline in the world
Estimated 60-95% of this marine pollution comes from land-based sources (primarily plastic), resulting in the death of 100,000 marine mammals annually, apart from killing millions of birds and fish
India has indeed taken a step in the right direction, with 18 states and Union territories having imposed a complete ban on plastic
But we also need to realize that a ban can only be a means to an end, and not the end itself
Jun, 26, 2018
Reduce, segregate: On plastic ban
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
World Environment Day, Bureau of Indian Standards
Scourge of plastic waste in India & world and methods that can reduce it
Context
Plastic ban in Maharashtra
Maharashtra has put a ban on several consumer articles made of plastic, after a three-month notice period to industry and users
It is being termed as naturally disruptive and extreme
Need for reducing plastic usage
Today, stemming the plastic tide is a national imperative
India hosted this year’s World Environment Day and PM Modi made a high-profile pledge, to international acclaim, that it would do away with all single-use plastics by 2022
Worldwide, the problem has got out of hand, with only 9% of about nine billion tonnes of plastic produced getting recycled
What led to the ban?
India has an uninspiring record when it comes to handling waste
India’s plastic waste is estimated officially at 26,000 tonnes a day
If the Centre and the States had got down to dealing with the existing regulations on plastic waste management and municipal solid waste, a ban would not even have become necessary
Specifications for the recycling of different types of plastics were issued two decades ago by the Bureau of Indian Standards
What needs to be done?
There has to be an effort on a war footing to segregate this waste at source
Priority should be given to stop the generation of mixed waste, which prevents recovery of plastics
Companies covered by extended producer responsibility provisions must be required to take back their waste
Incentives to reduce the use of plastic carry bags, single-use cups, plates and cutlery must be in place
Retailers must be required to switch to paper bags
Carry bag production using cloth can create more jobs than machines using plastic pellets
The Urban Development Secretary in each State, who heads the monitoring committee under the rules, should be mandated to produce a monthly report on how much plastic waste is collected, including details of the types of chemicals involved, and the disposal methods
Such compulsory disclosure norms will maintain public pressure on the authorities, including the State Pollution Control Boards
Way Forward
Plastics became popular because they are inexpensive, can be easily produced and offer great convenience
Their wild popularity has turned them into a scourge
We need substitutes for plastic, incentives to re-use, and better waste disposal
Jun, 07, 2018
Life in plastic: on waste management framework
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016
This article critically analyses policy vacuum in India in plastic waste management.
Context
Dismal Framework on Paper only
The Solid Waste Management Rules and the Plastic Waste Management Rules of 2016, which built on previous regulations, mostly remain on paper.
The Centre’s somewhat liberal estimate shows over 60% of about 25,000 tonnes of plastic waste generated daily is collected.
That essentially means a staggering 10,000 tonnes of trash is being released into the environment, a lot of it going into the sea. Also, not every piece of plastic collected by the system is scientifically processed.
It is no surprise, therefore, that the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna river system is on the UN map of 10 rivers worldwide that collectively carry the bulk of the plastic waste into the oceans.
The effects are evident: they threaten marine life and the well-being of people, as microplastics are now found even in drinking water.
Outreaching with Environment (Protection) Act: Need of the hour
In their response to the crisis, communities and environmentally minded individuals are ahead of governments and municipal authorities.
But, valuable as they are, voluntary efforts cannot achieve what systemic reform can.
It is the Centre’s responsibility to ensure that the Environment (Protection) Act, the overarching law that enables anti-pollution rules to be issued, is implemented in letter and spirit.
Ideally, regulation should help stop the manufacture of single-use plastic articles such as carry bags and cutlery, and encourage the use of biodegradable materials.
The Real Challenge
The provisions of the Plastic Waste Management Rules require manufacturers of compostable bags to get a certificate from the Central Pollution Control Board, but this has not stopped counterfeit products from entering the market.
Local bodies mandated under rules to ensure segregation, collection and transfer of waste to registered recyclers have spectacularly failed to fulfil their responsibilities.
The State Level Monitoring Committees provided for under the rules have not been made accountable. The waste management framework is dysfunctional, and India and the world face a plastics crisis.
Solving it will take more than slogans
Jan, 18, 2018
Govt seeks tech solutions for waste management
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Waste to wealth concept
Rising domestic as well as industrial waste in India and problems associated with it
News
Concept note in waste management technologies
The science and technology ministry has called for a concept note in waste management technologies by 31 January from interested academic institutes and research & development (R&D) organizations
The government is seeking technological solutions for managing the huge untreated waste across the country
The waste is not only leading to poor sanitary conditions but also damaging the environment
What is government seeking?
The government is looking at organizations to participate in developing technologies for biomedical waste and for setting up a demo plant for hazardous waste in an institute or university
It is also looking at technologies to address agricultural waste (stubble management) to find an alternative to crop burning
The move is part of government’s concept of ‘waste to wealth’
Electronic waste is another focus area as the government is looking at developing “simple indigenous material recovery technology for specific applications (precious and other metals, plastics, glass and rare earths) in collaboration with industry
Besides these, other major areas that are on the government’s radar are urban and rural solid waste and industrial waste
Problem of waste management
Around 62 million tonnes (mt) of solid waste is generated in India every year but only 43 mt is collected and a mere 12 mt treated
About 15,000 tonnes of plastic waste is generated every day but of that, only 9,000 tonnes is collected and processed
India generates 1.7 million tonnes of e-waste annually, which is rising at the rate of 5% a year
Dec, 29, 2017
Bali declares ‘garbage emergency’ amid sea of waste
Image source
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Clean seas campaign, Global Partnership on Marine Litter
Harmful effects of plastic waste on marine life and ways to reduce it
News
World’s second-biggest contributor to marine debris
A colossal 1.29 million metric tons is estimated to be produced annually by Indonesia
The archipelago of more than 17,000 islands is the world’s second-biggest contributor to marine debris after China
Garbage emergency
The waves of plastic flooding into rivers and oceans have been causing problems for years
It has been clogging waterways in cities, increasing the risk of floods, and injuring or killing marine animals who ingest or become trapped by plastic packaging
Microplastics can contaminate fish which, if eaten by humans, could cause health problems including cancer
The problem has grown so bad that officials in Bali last month declared a “garbage emergency” across a six-kilometer stretch of coast
Clean Seas campaign
Indonesia is one of nearly 40 countries that are part of UN Environment’s Clean Seas campaign
As part of its commitment, the Indonesian government has pledged to reduce marine plastic waste by 70 % by 2025
Back2Basics
UNEP Clean Seas Campaign
The campaign aims to halt the tide of plastic trash polluting the oceans
UN Environment launched #CleanSeas in February 2017, with the aim of engaging governments, the general public, civil society and the private sector in the fight against marine plastic litter
Over the next five years, UNEP will address the root-cause of marine litter by targeting the production and consumption of non-recoverable and single-use plastic
The campaign contributes to the goals of the Global Partnership on Marine Litter, a voluntary open-ended partnership for international agencies, governments, businesses, academia, local authorities and non-governmental organizations hosted by UN Environment
Dec, 02, 2017
[pib] Star Rating Protocol for Garbage Free Cities Introduced
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Star rating protocol for garbage free cities
Urbanisation challenges
News:
A guide Book for Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) on Bulk Solid Waste Generator’s Compliance of Solid Waste Management Rules 2016, and the online database for states and cities, both pertaining to SBM Urban was launched
The guidebook lays out the roles and responsibilities of bulk waste generators and will handhold ULBs in implementing the SWM Rules,
While the online database will henceforth capture data directly from states and cities online, regarding their progress on SBM components, thereby enhancing the robustness and transparency of Mission monitoring.
The star rating protocol is different from the Swachh Survekshan ranking survey in that it will allow multiple cities to be awarded the same star rating, and is expected to be formally introduced by the Ministry in the next few weeks.
Major takeaways:
In order to enthuse cities with a spirit of healthy competition, the concept of a star rating protocol for garbage free cities was introduced during the workshop.
Given its potential as a developmental cum aspirational tool for cities to incrementally improve their overall cleanliness, while working towards a garbage-free status, this is expected to greatly enthuse the city administrators.
The focus on the issue of cleanliness of community and public toilets, there is a concerted drive to seek user feedback for CT/PTs through the Google toilet locator and Swachhata app.
Uploading all community / public toilets in cities on Google maps under the Business listing category, integrating with Swachhata app
Sep, 21, 2016
National wastewater reuse policy sought- II
Source: The report ‘Closing the water loop: Reuse of treated wastewater in urban India’- by the global consulting firm PwC
Ground water: Regulatory intervention is key to prevent industries from over-exploiting groundwater
The current low cost of exploiting groundwater makes reuse unviable and at the same time, irrecoverably depletes groundwater resources
Norms: The Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Water Resources should work together to define quality norms for different grades of industrial water
This would help standardise the design of reuse systems nationwide
Historically, infrastructure development in the water sector has been fully funded by the Central Government
For PPP (public-private partnership) structures to evolve in this sector, significant Govt interventions are required to create a favourable environment for private sector participation
Sep, 21, 2016
National wastewater reuse policy sought- I
Source: The report ‘Closing the water loop: Reuse of treated wastewater in urban India’- by the global consulting firm PwC
Why policy? To help address the perennial concern of urban water stress by mandating targets and laying out legislative, regulatory and financial measures to hit those targets
Urban growth: Country is expected to add approximately 404 million new urban dwellers between now and 2050
This rapid urban growth will be linked with higher industrial output and greater energy demand thus adding to the urban water stress
Institutionalising the reuse of treated wastewater could go a long way in helping utilities to address this challenge in an effective manner
Discuss: With rapid urbanisation, municipal solid waste and waste water is increasingly generated. What could be done to tackle this mess in present context so as to balance urbanisation with the environment?
Apr, 06, 2016
Govt. notifies new rules on waste management
News: The Environment Ministry has notified rules to ensure that the solid waste generated by some groups are treated and recycled
Municipal bodies will be allowed to charge user fees and levy spot fines for littering and non-segregation
There is a key provision is to formalise the profession of rag-picking, who form a critical arm of society
Groups: Hotels, residential colonies, bulk producers of consumer goods, ports, railway stations, airports and pilgrimage spots
Significance: The rules on solid waste management have been amended after 16 years
Criticism: There is no binding provision on fines
Mar, 30, 2016
Rules to manage construction & demolition waste
Context: Govt notified The Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules, 2016
Also include barring people from dumping such waste on roadsides and mandatory recycling
Rules stipulate that building permits will be given only after a waste management plan is provided to authorities
Aim: Reducing dust pollution that is linked to a spurt in respiratory diseases in big cities
Mar, 19, 2016
New plastic waste management rules
Context: The Plastic Waste Management (PWM) Rules 2016, issued by the Union environment ministry
Highlights: They bring the country’s gram panchayats into the picture
It introduced the concept of extended producer responsibility (EPR)
Under the new ERP concept, producers are responsible for collecting waste generated from their products
It also banned plastic carry bags thinner than 50 microns
Feb, 12, 2016
Centre makes it mandatory for power firms to buy from solid waste plants
Context: Prime Minister’s Swachh Bharat Mission
Background: About 1.68 lakh tonnes of solid waste is collected across the country
What’s in the news? – It is mandatory for power distribution companies to buy electricity from power plants fuelled by solid waste
Why? – Power discoms were not willing to buy electricity from solid waste-run power plants
Objective: To generate 700 megawatts of electricity from solid waste-run plants in the next 5 years
Oct, 02, 2015
Swachh Bharat: plan to produce power, compost from solid waste
The Urban Development Ministry is planning to generate electricity and compost from municipal solid waste.
A proposal will be introduced before Cabinet to provide Market Development Assistance on sale of city compost to farmers.
Ministry of Power will amend the Electricity Act 2003 to enable mandatory purchase of power generated from municipal solid waste.
The Power Ministry was finalising a tariff rate that would help “waste to energy projects” sustain in the market.
The Ministry is also finalising the pricing model for the compost produced out of city trash, and it would be sold to farmers on subsidised rates.
Jun, 12, 2015
Delhi reels under 15,000 tonnes of waste
Why? because 12,000 sanitation workers are refusing to work without getting their salaries.
The Municipal corporations have the power to invoke the Essential Services Maintenance (ESMA) Act and force the sanitation staff to resume work but that’s far from their mind.
Typhoid, jaundice and skin allergies are some of the most common health problems that can occur.
Post-trifurcation of Delhi, the corporations, mainly East and North, have been struggling to streamline basic services like sanitation.
May, 18, 2019
Poly-Di-Ketoenamine (PDK): New plastic that could be fully recycled
News
The scientists have created a next-generation plastic that can be fully recycled into new materials of any colour, shape, or form, without loss of performance or quality.
Poly-Di-Ketoenamine (PDK)
A team of researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Berkeley National Laboratory has designed a recyclable plastic called PDK.
The monomers of PDK plastic could be recovered and freed from any compounded additives by placing the material in a highly acidic solution.
It helps to break the bonds between the monomers and separate them from chemical additives.
The recovered PDK monomers can be remade into polymers, and those recycled polymers can form new plastic materials without inheriting the colour or other features of the original material.
They could also upcycle the plastic by adding additional features, such as flexibility.
Why most plastics cannot be recycled?
Most plastics are made of polymers, chains of hydrogen and carbon which are chiefly derived from petroleum products like crude oil.
Polymers are composed of shorter strands called monomers and the process is called polymerization.
To give plastics certain characteristics like toughness, flexibility or color, certain chemicals are added which from strong bonds with the monomers.
While many polymers are thermoplastic, meaning they can be melted down and reused, the additives bonded to them can interfere with the process.
So when plastics are ground up and mixed together for recycling, all those additives make the final product unpredictable and lower quality.
That’s why most recycled plastic is “downcycled” or turned into items like handbags or benches instead of completing the recycling loop.
May, 13, 2019
Basel Convention
News
Nations agreed to add plastic to the Basel Convention, a treaty that regulates movement of hazardous materials from one country to another, in order to combat the dangerous effects of plastic pollution around the world.
Amending the Basel Convention
Parties to the Basel Convention have reached agreement on a legally-binding, globally-reaching mechanism for managing plastic waste.
The Geneva meeting amended the 1989 Basel Convention on the control of hazardous wastes to include plastic waste in a legally-binding framework.
The new amendment would empower developing countries to refuse “dumping plastic waste” by others.
The resolution means contaminated and most mixes of plastic wastes will require prior consent from receiving countries before they are traded, with the exceptions of mixes of PE, PP and PET.
For far too long, developed countries like the U.S. and Canada have been exporting their mixed toxic plastic wastes to developing Asian countries claiming it would be recycled in the receiving country.
What is Basel Convention?
The Basel Convention stands for the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal.
It is an international treaty that was designed to reduce the movements of hazardous waste between nations, and specifically to prevent transfer of hazardous waste from developed to less developed countries (LDCs).
It aims to assist LDCs in environmentally sound management of the hazardous and other wastes they generate.
The Convention was opened for signature on 22 March 1989, and entered into force on 5 May 1992.
As of October 2018, 186 states and the EU are parties to the Convention. Haiti and the United States have signed the Convention but not ratified it.
It does not, however, address the movement of radioactive waste.
The Convention is also intended to minimize the amount and toxicity of wastes generated, to ensure their environmentally sound management.
Why such move?
Instead, much of this contaminated mixed waste cannot be recycled and is instead dumped or burned, or finds its way into the ocean.
Plastic waste pollution has reached “epidemic proportions” with an estimated 100 million tonnes of plastic now found in the oceans.
Even though the U.S. and a few others have not signed the accord, they cannot ship plastic waste to countries that are on board with the deal.
Much of the contaminated mixed waste cannot be recycled and is instead dumped or burned.
Ban on two chemicals
The meeting also undertook to eliminate two toxic chemical groups — Dicofol and Perfluorooctanoic Acid, plus related compounds.
The latter has been used in a wide variety of industrial and domestic applications, including non-stick cookware and food processing equipment, as well as carpets, paper and paints.
Apr, 24, 2019
Kumbh brought Allahabad to verge of an epidemic, says NGT
News
Both the governments, at the Centre and Uttar Pradesh, claimed to have organised a ‘swachh’ — clean — Kumbh in the winter of 2018-19, but the NGT seems to differ.
In fact, the quasi judicial body rang alarm bells about host city Allahabad being on the the verge of an epidemic.
Alarms raised by NGT
While predicting a rise in case of acute diarrhoea, enteric fever, viral hepatisis and cholera, the NGT said responsibility needs to be fixed so an epidemic can be prevented.
Why Kumbh left an epidemic behind?
I. Poor solid waste management
The green bench flagged poor solid waste management during the months-long religious gathering.
The NGT said 60,000 metric tonnes (mt) of solid waste had been collected at nearest SWM Plant which was lying untreated.
Of this, 18,000 mt was generated in Kumbh, but the plant was not operational since September 2018.
II. Polluted Groundwater
Also, the tribunal pointed out that groundwater too has been polluted.
Dirty water from toilets was being collected in kutcha pits.
The base of the soak pits had not been lined and the dirty water could percolate underground.
III. Ganga , the ultimate sufferer
The NGT found that a large number of toilets were constructed very close to the river.
The nearby geotubes had more sewage than it could treat.
The geo tube was not working satisfactorily and 50 per cent of the sewage from the drain was trapped and the rest was going into the Ganga.
IV. No lesson learnt from past
This is not the first Kumbh to have come under criticism for poor managment.
Things were far from perfect during the last Kumbh as well.
The CAG of India’s audit report of the event read, that no effective planning for protection of environment and pollution control was made for the Maha Kumbh.
Apr, 12, 2019
India stares at pile of solar e-waste
CONTEXT
By 2050, India will likely stare at a pile of a new category of electronic waste, namely solar e-waste, says a study made public on Thursday.
Background
Currently, India’s e-waste rules have no laws mandating solar cell manufacturers to recycle or dispose waste from this sector.
No laws mandating disposal; volume estimated at 1.8 million tonnes by 2050.
“India’s PV (photovoltaic) waste volume is estimated to grow to 200,000 tonnes by 2030 and around 1.8 million tonnes by 2050,” said the study by Bridge To India (BTI), an energy consultancy firm.
India’s achievement in solar sector
India is among the leading markets for solar cells in the world, buoyed by the government’s commitment to install 100 GW of solar power by 2022.
So far, India has installed solar cells for about 28 GW and this is largely from imported solar PV cells.
Solar cell waste
Solar cell modules are made by processing sand to make silicon, casting silicon ingots, using wafers to create cells and then assembling them to make modules.
India’s domestic manufacturers are largely involved in assembling cells and modules.
These modules are 80% glass and aluminium, and non-hazardous.
Other materials used, including polymers, metals, metallic compounds and alloys, and are classified as potentially hazardous, says the study.
Handling of solar waste
India is poorly positioned to handle PV waste as it doesn’t yet have policy guidelines on the same
a lack of a policy framework is coupled with the fact that even basic recycling facilities for laminated glass and e-waste are unavailable.
Despite the e-waste regulation being in place for over seven years, only less than 4% of estimated e-waste is recycled in the organised sector as per the latest estimates from the Central Pollution Control Board
Conclusion
While the solar sector continues to grow robustly, there is no clarity on solar waste management in India.
Apr, 09, 2019
Biomedical Waste Management in India: Still a looming concern
News
The seemingly endless issue of biomedical waste management (BMWM) in India has necessitated the MoEFCC to amend and enforce the “parent rules” of 2016, yet again.
Combating the issues has multifaceted humanitarian and environmental challenges for various communities of the country, and therefore, needs immediate responsiveness for our common world.
BMWM (Amendment) Rules, 2018
All bedded healthcare facilities (HCFs) irrespective of their number of beds have to regularly update the BMWM register
HCFs which have beds less than 10 shall have to comply with the output discharge standard for liquid waste generated, latest by December 31, 2019
Corresponding duties of Ministry of Defence officials as per Schedule III: A report needs to be submitted to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) after the inspection and monitoring of HCFs, Medical Inspection (MI) rooms and AFMS.
In March 2018, the BMW amendments delve into extension of dates to phase out — chlorinated plastic bags (excluding blood bags) and gloves etc.
Scenario of bio-medical waste management in India
According to the CPCB annual report of 2016, total quantity of BMW generation in the country is approximately 517 tonnes per day (TPD).
To grapple with these manifold increase in generation of BMW, 199 common bio-medical waste treatment facilities (CBWTFs) are in operation and 23 are under construction (CPCB, 2017).
Safe and effective management of waste is not only a legal necessity but also a social responsibility.
Ineffective management
Nevertheless, these amendments are yet to be monitored and enforced on the ground.
Despite of having the BMWM legislation since 1998, followed by the changes in the recent past, many regions of the country still have dearth of systematic efforts to mitigate risks associated with such waste.
The compliance of rules is still an ongoing process in the country and law in many states is writ large.
The legal obligation has been reduced to paper formality only and there is a lack of concern, motivation, awareness and cost factor in proper biomedical waste management.
Way Forward
Managing healthcare waste requires effective knowledge not only among those who produce the healthcare waste but also among those who handles it.
So, to achieve this, HCFs and regulatory authorities have to take stringent measures in order to ensure safe disposal of BMW in the country.
To state a few:
training and awareness programme for healthcare personnel needs to be conducted;
legal actions against defaulting HCFs and ill-operated CBWTFs is obligatory;
self-regulatory mechanism for monitoring and implementation for waste management should be encouraged and
well timed sufficient allocation of funds through central funding from National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) should be ensured.
Mar, 25, 2019
Galapagos Islands
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Galapagos Islands
Not Much
News
Tonnes of plastic waste wash up on the shores of the Galapagos Islands where microparticles end up in the stomachs of species found only in the Pacific archipelago 1,000 km west of mainland Ecuador.
Galapagos Islands
The Galapagos Islands an archipelago of volcanic islands part of the Republic of Ecuador, distributed on either side of the Equator in the Pacific Ocean surrounding the centre of the Western Hemisphere.
The island inspired Charles Darwin’s Theory of evolution and was his field of study.
The Islands and their surrounding waters form the Galapagos Province of Ecuador, the Galapagos National Park, and the Galapagos Marine Reserve.
UNESCO recognised the islands as a World Heritage Site and as a biosphere reserve.
Menace of Microplastics
Sun rays and the ocean’s saltwater break down bottles, bags, lids, containers and fishing nets.
The tiny plastic pieces become part of the food chain.
Those microparticles, often from waste discarded in big cities from other countries and even continents, are perhaps one of the greatest threats to the iguanas, tortoises, birds and fish of the Galapagos.
More than 90 percent of the waste gathered doesn’t come from Galapagos activities, but rather from South America, Central America and even a great deal of waste with Asian branding.
Mar, 18, 2019
UN meet dilutes Indian plan to phase out single-use plastics
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Issues related to plastic waste disposal in India
News
An ambitious resolution piloted by India to phase out single-use plastics by 2025, was watered down at the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) that concluded recently in Nairobi.
Deadline pushed back
The final declaration on March 15 removed the firm timelines and edited out the “decisively” and only committed to a “reduction by 2030.”
At the World Environment Day summit on June 5, 2018 India had pledged to eliminate single-use plastics from India by 2022.
This pushed several States — notably Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh — to enforce previous commitments to ban plastic bags and similar disposables.
Ahead of the UNEA, the UN secretariat had invited inputs from member states to forge a common declaration regarding addressing a host of environmental challenges.
What concerns India?
A CPCB estimate in 2015 says that Indian cities generate 15,000 tonnes of plastic waste daily and about 70% of the plastic produced in the country ends up as waste.
Seventeen States have plastic bans, on paper.
Experts have rued the inadequacy of collection and recycling systems to address the burgeoning plastic waste problem.
Reasons cited
The UNEA lauded India for playing a key role in advocating a time-bound ban on single use plastic.
A person privy to negotiations told that India didn’t work enough to garner international support to carry it all the way through.
Curbing Nitrogen pollution
Along with plastic, India also piloted a resolution on curbing nitrogen pollution.
The global nitrogen-use efficiency is low, resulting in pollution by reactive nitrogen which threatens human health, ecosystem services, contributes to climate change and stratospheric ozone depletion.
Only a small proportion of the plastics produced globally are recycled, with most of it damaging the environment and aquatic bio-diversity.
Assist this newscard with:
Ministry plugs loophole that allowed plastic waste import
Mar, 07, 2019
Ministry plugs loophole that allowed plastic waste import
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Features of the Amendment rules
Issues related to plastic waste disposal in India
News
Solid plastic waste has been prohibited from import into the country including in Special Economic Zones (SEZ) and by Export Oriented Units (EOU) said the MoEFCC.
The change in law was part of the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management & Transboundary Movement) Amendment Rules, 2019.
Salient features of the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management& Transboundary Movement) Amendment Rules, 2019:
Solid plastic waste has been prohibited from import into the country including in Special Economic Zones (SEZ) and by Export Oriented Units (EOU).
Exporters of silk waste have now been given exemption from requiring permission from the Ministry.
Electrical and electronic assemblies and components manufactured in and exported from India, if found defective can now be imported back into the country, within a year of export, without obtaining permission from MoEFCC.
Industries which do not require consent under Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974 and Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981, are now exempted from requiring authorization also under the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management & Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016, provided that hazardous and other wastes generated by such industries are handed over to the authorized actual users, waste collectors or disposal facilities.
Why such move?
In spite of having a significant plastic pollution load of its own, and a ban on plastic waste imports, imported PET bottles from abroad for processing SEZ.
The influx of PET bottles was quadrupled from 2017 to 2018.
Indian firms are importing plastic scrap from China, Italy, Japan and Malawi for recycling.
India consumes about 13 million tonnes of plastic and recycles only about 4 million tonnes.
To incentivise domestic plastic recycling units, the government had banned the import of plastic waste, particularly PET bottles, in 2015.
In 2016, an amendment allowed such imports as long as they were carried out by agencies situated in SEZs.
Feb, 27, 2019
Cities at crossroads: Small town, cleaner future
Case
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016
This article analyses how big cities can learn waste management from small cities and towns
NEWS
CONTEXT
Small and mid-size cities and towns of India are showing the way on how to manage solid waste by getting communities to segregate waste and keeping the waste streams separate.
The case study of Suryapet
The earliest and the best success story was of Suryapet, a city in Telangana, located 136 km east of Hyderabad, with a population of a little over one lakh.
A single individual, S A Khadar, the commissioner of Suryapet municipal corporation, demonstrated personal leadership which made a big difference.
He managed all of the Suryapet’s wet and dry waste (32 tonnes daily at that time) on a half-acre site within the city, earning a gross income of Rs 1 lakh per month from vermi-composting and recycling.
He began by winning the hearts of his sanitary workers by prompt satisfaction of minor demands, such as granting leave and/or reassignment of workplaces.
Next, he wooed the residents, one mohalla or street or commercial area at a time, by organising daily meetings on morning rounds from six to nine am before beginning his office work. Residential pockets that gave 100 per cent unmixed waste earned token gifts.
The commissioner got banks to fund new tractor-trailers (which can unload waste mechanically) for self-help groups by guaranteeing their monthly repayments to banks from the city payments to their SHGs for waste collection services.
Open drain cleaning was done in the afternoons. Soggy silt went directly into a wheelie-bin and then into a dedicated leak-proof collection vehicle which unloaded the silt and the debris for widening the road shoulders of all radial roads.
The Suryapet experience clearly shows that citizens can be incentivised to give wet and dry wastes unmixed when they see clear administrative will and primary collection vehicles designed to accept and transport wastes unmixed.
The case study of Karjat
Within two days of joining, Kokare commissioner of the municipal council of Karjat, strictly enforced Maharashtra’s ban on plastic carry bags. These are now replaced by sari-cloth bags which cost Rs 6 per bag.
Handcart vendors use bags made out of newspapers.
What is amazing is how he persuaded Karjat residents, already enjoying doorstep waste collection, to cooperate in giving 36 kinds of waste separately on different days of the week! This is probably a global first.
Secret of success
The secret of the success of Kokare and Khadar, is passion and daily personal supervision, both going around the city every morning before office hours to meet, persuade and exhort citizens to cooperate.
In Karjat, after initial warnings, doorstep collectors refuse to collect mixed waste and also report the person. The same evening, an official comes and grills the person on where they dumped their uncollected mixed waste.
Such intense individual effort is especially required at the start. Once word gets around, cooperation is easier.
Other examples
In Namakkal (population of 55,000) in Tamil Nadu, pushcart collection workers have been manually separating mixed waste into wet and dry, daily at the doorstep of each household, rather than attempt behaviour change.
Alappuzha in Kerala was recently recognised by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) for its decentralised system of waste management.
In these and many more small towns, the secret of success is meticulous micro-planning, committed leadership at the administrative level and receptive and engaged communities. The objective is clear — a litter-free, bin-free and dump-free city.
Lessons for metro cities
Big cities scoff at small towns leading the way and claim that their own waste volumes are unmanageable. But even in large metropolitan cities, populations of most wards are smaller than of these towns. Decentralisation and effective use of delegated power at the ward level is crucial if micro-planning and implementation is to work with cooperation from RWAs. Only then can we find a collective solution to the challenges of solid waste management in our larger cities.
Feb, 25, 2019
Deodorizing waste
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Increasing pollution due to untreated waste and need of waste management as a policy issue
NEWS
CONTEXT
India’s cities are drowning in waste — but no one is bothered.
Effects of contaminated water
The World Bank estimates that more than a fifth of all communicable diseases in India (21%) are caused by contaminated water.
It attributes one in ten deaths in India to diseases or infections directly or indirectly transmitted through water.
Over 500 children die every day in India due to diarrhoeal diseases.
Nitrogen, a growing pollutant
According to a study by the Indian Nitrogen Group, the amount of reactive nitrogen in a bulk of the water bodies in India is already twice the limit prescribed by WHO.
Nitrogen pollution from untreated sewage now outstrips nitrogen pollution from the Indian farmer’s urea addiction.
Clean India’s addition to nitrogen pollution problem
Under the mission, in the past four years alone, over nine crore toilets have been constructed.
Of these, only 60 lakh are in urban areas, where one assumes they are connected to some sort of sewage system.
A study done by the Centre for Science and Environment in 30 cities in Uttar Pradesh found that only 28% of toilets in these cities were connected to a sewage system.
The rest will be generating fecal sludge, sewage and septage which has no place to go.
According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), 63% of urban sewage flowing into rivers is untreated.
Up to a third of the installed sewage treatment capacity is fully or partly dysfunctional
Sewage management is missing from agenda
Of the 99 cities in the ‘Smart Cities’ mission, which are collectively spending ₹2 lakh crore over five years (from 2015), only 2.4% of the money is going to be spent on waste management.
AMRUT covers a much larger spread — 500 so-called ‘mission cities’ across the country. Of these, only 217 pitched for a sewage treatment plant as an AMRUT project.
No access to water
According to NITI Aayog’s composite water management index report released last year, 75% of households do not have access to drinking water on premises, 70% households lack piped water (potable or otherwise) and as many as 20 cities will effectively use up all available water resources by 2020!
Conclusion
Sewage and waste need to come centre stage in our policy debates. Elections may be fought on ‘bijli, Sadak, paani’ (power, roads, water) but no election is fought over naali (drain). Unless that happens, we run the real risk of eventually either choking or being poisoned by our own waste.
Jan, 30, 2019
Waste-to-Energy plants that use solid waste as feedstock pose threat to environment
degradation, environmental impact assessment.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Basic knowledge of Waste to Energy plants.
The news-card analyses issues and challenges with Waste to Energy plants in India, in a brief manner.
Context
Waste to Energy (WtE) plants in our cities, using inadequately segregated municipal waste as feedstock, are highly dangerous because of the toxic gases and particulates they spew when they burn mixed waste in the process of incineration.
The Okhla WtE Plant Case
Residents of Okhla and surrounding areas in Delhi have been protesting that the WtE plant in their vicinity is not complying with the stipulations of National Green Tribunal (NGT).
It is not too much for an urban locality with houses, hospitals, schools and shops to want no industrial polluter in their midst.
With its location within 30 metres of the residential areas, emissions remain a major issue with the residents.
The plant was slapped a fine of Rs 25 lakh in February 2017 by the NGT but many questions about air quality standards in the area remain unanswered, including why the plant spews soot and ash in the neighbourhood.
Latest Protest
The authorities are considering the expansion of this WtE plant from 16 MW to 40 MW.
The latest protests by the residents at a public hearing were reported in the press only a few days ago.
The residents claim that the plant’s original Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) issued to IL&FS bears no resemblance to the plant now in operation.
A new EIA has been filed for the proposed expansion, and they are apprehensive about the proposal to add two boilers.
WtE Plants in India: Lazy solution to solid waste management
There are five municipal WtE plants operational in India with a total capacity to produce 66.4 MW electricity per day.
Of this, the lion’s share — 52 MW per day — is generated in Delhi by its three existing plants.
There is also talk of setting up a new WtE plant with a capacity of 25 MW at Tehkhand in South-East Delhi.
The bandwagon is rolling on with cities across different states vying for WtE plants as a quick and lazy solution to the complex challenge of solid waste management.
Issues with WtE Plants
WtE plants in India burn mixed waste
The presence of chlorinated hydrocarbons like PVC results in the release of dioxins and furans when the waste is burnt at less than 850 degree C.
Appropriate filtering mechanisms need to be installed to control such dangerous emissions.
Dioxins and furans are known to be carcinogenic and can lead to impairment of immune, endocrine, nervous and reproductive systems.
2. They are extremely difficult and costly to measure, as the experience of Okhla shows.
In the past, joint inspections involving the residents have shown that the plant was being operated without the adequate use of activated charcoal to filter out dioxins, furans and mercury from the emissions.
3. Serious pollutants of air and water
Even when incineration takes place under optimal conditions, large amounts of flue gases, mercury vapour and lead compounds are released.
There is always about 30 per cent residue from incineration in the form of slag (bottom ash) and fly ash (particulate matter), which are also known to be serious pollutants of air and water.
WtE plants are being phased out in the West
Even people living in the neighbourhood of the best-maintained plants in the West are said to be prone to higher levels of cancer and other illnesses.
That is why WtE plants are being phased out in the West.
Unfortunately, while the clamour for WtE plants is growing in India, their operations are neither strictly maintained nor adequately monitored.
4. Inefficient in generating energy
WtE plants in India are also inefficient in generating energy.
Municipal waste in India has a very high biodegradable (wet) waste content ranging anywhere between 60 and 70 per cent of the total, compared with 30 per cent in the West.
This gives our waste a high moisture content and low calorific value.
Also, since Indian households have traditionally been recycling their waste such as paper, plastic, cardboard, cloth, rubber, etc, to kabadiwalas, this further lowers the calorific value of our waste.
Challenge of segregation at source
India’s Solid Waste Management policy requires that wet and dry wastes should not be mixed so that only non-compostable and non-recyclable wastes with at least 1,500 kcal/kg should reach WtE plants.
Such waste comprises only 10 to 15 per cent of the total waste.
The challenge of segregation at source is compounded by the municipal governments themselves when they use compacters to reduce the transport cost of the waste.
Compacting compresses the waste and makes even gross segregation at the plant site impossible.
In the absence of adequate feedstock of non-compostable and non-recyclable waste, it becomes necessary to use auxiliary fuel, adding to the cost of operating the plants.
Waste to energy solutions
Private companies (mostly foreign) are keenly hawking “waste to energy solutions” to handle our growing volumes of urban waste.
Our urban local bodies, which bear the responsibility for solid waste management in our cities, are easily misguided into adopting these “solutions”.
They are themselves reluctant to make an effort at keeping wet and dry wastes, recyclable and non-recyclable wastes, unmixed.
They find WtE plants an easy option to legitimise the burning of mixed waste.
Way Forward
Municipal authorities should be made aware that WtE technologies are being phased out in the West.
They should not be allowed unless the waste offered meets the criterion specified by the SWM Rules 2016.
A crucial element of enforcement will be to first ensure that the waste is not mixed at the source of generation and then that the handling of waste is in unmixed streams.
Even where outsourcing contracts clearly specify that handling must be in unmixed streams, there should be strict penalties for non-compliance.
WtE plants using municipal solid waste from Indian cities as feedstock pose a serious threat to our health and environment.
We must explore low cost options such as composting and bio-methanation.
First things first: No mixing of waste at the point of generation.
Jan, 22, 2019
Global alliance of companies to eliminate plastic waste launched
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
AEPW
Issues related to plastic waste.
News
An alliance of global companies launched a new organisation to help eliminate plastic waste, especially in the ocean.
Alliance to End Plastic Waste (AEPW)
The AEPW comprises of about 30 companies, which pledged over $1 billion to eliminate plastic waste across the world.
The aim is to develop solutions to mitigate plastic pollution and promote a circular economy by utlising used plastics.
The Alliance has been working with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development as a founding strategic partner.
Designed as a non-profit organization, the Alliance includes companies from across North and South America, Europe, Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa as well as the Middle East are part of the Alliance.
Member companies include those that make, use, sell, process, collect and recycle plastics, as well as chemical and plastic manufacturers, consumer goods companies, retailers, converters, and waste management companies, also called the plastics value chain.
From India, Reliance Industries will advance efforts towards a sustainable future.
Focus areas of AEPW
Infrastructure development to collect and manage waste and increase recycling
Innovation to advance and scale up new technologies that make recycling and recovering plastics easier and create value from post-use plastics
Education and engagement of governments, businesses, and communities to mobilize action;
Clean-up of concentrated areas of plastic waste in the environment, particularly the major conduits of waste, such as rivers, that carry land-based waste to the ocean.
Dec, 17, 2018
No time left to waste on waste
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From the UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Bioremediation
Issues related to waste management and how to tackle this problem seeing urbanization trend in India
Context
Waste management problem in Delhi
Delhi’s garbage woes have been hurtling towards some sort of an endgame ever since a portion of the landfill at Ghazipur, on the city’s eastern edge, collapsed onto an adjoining road and buried two people in September 2017
A temporary ban on dumping at the site was immediately announced, but the Ghazipur garbage mountain is already nearly as tall as the Qutub Minar, as the Supreme Court caustically observed recently
With the quest for another dumpsite going nowhere (as nobody wants a mound of garbage next to their neighbourhood), there is no clarity yet on what to do with the thousands of tonnes of solid waste Delhi generates every day
Garbage problem set to rise
The impasse in Delhi is a reflection of India’s troubling relationship with waste
India’s cities already generate over 150,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste every day, with Mumbai being the world’s fifth most wasteful city
The waste heaps that dot the edges of India’s cities are set to double in size by 2025
Only one-third of the waste undergoes even rudimentary treatment, according to the urban ministry and hardly any of it is segregated, which would make processing easier
As India’s economic growth accelerates, the garbage problem would only get bigger, unless immediate solutions are found to delink growth from garbage generation
According to the Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment, cities are already beginning to run out of land on which to dump their waste and have begun throwing it in the backyards of smaller towns, suburbs and villages
Thus, garbage may soon become a flashpoint that sets off recurrent conflict across the urban landscape
How India plans to deal with the waste?
The only big national idea on offer has been to incinerate or burn the garbage. That is what the NITI Aayog had proposed in its medium-term three-year vision for the country, which was released in August 2017
By burning the waste, a small amount of energy could also be produced, at least in theory
Currently, about 3% of urban India’s daily garbage output gets fed into waste-to-energy incinerators
A minuscule amount of energy is generated, but there has been very little debate on whether incinerators work in the Indian context
Problems with incineration
Unlike the Western world, a large chunk of India’s waste is still organic kitchen waste—almost 40% of the total volume
Since segregation of waste is yet to become a reality, incineration is a highly inefficient solution
In the Indian context, there is also very little certainty on whether the harmful gases, which are a byproduct of incineration, are adequately contained and treated
Using bioremediation
Apart from incineration, the other big idea that several cities have tried is bioremediation, which effectively involves the use of living micro-organisms to degrade the contaminants in a landfill into less toxic forms
While the technology is somewhat effective in dealing with existing landfills, in an ideal future, the waste processing chain should abolish the need for a landfill to begin with
Various Indian cities have set on aim to build a “zero landfill” city
Segregation and composting are a big part of the mix of solutions that are being implemented
Their experience in inducing collective action among ordinary citizens to segregate waste may hold important lessons for India’s large cities
Way forward
Global examples show that the national mood changes under the influence of an adequate trigger, which makes a radical change in collective behaviour possible
When PM Modi launched the Swachh Bharat Mission, the hope was that it would serve as India’s trigger. Four years down the line, nothing much has changed
Indians should start demanding clean and healthy cities as a basic right and governments must step up and deliver that basic human need
Dec, 14, 2018
India’s 'Help Us Green' wins UN Climate Action Award
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Help Us Green, UN Climate Action Award
Problem of ceremonial wastes in India and its disposal
News
Context
Indian group ‘Help Us Green’ has received a UN Climate Action Award.
Help Us Green is based in four cities of Uttar Pradesh and got the award in the Women for Results category.
Why awarded?
It is doing its part to clean up the Ganges by recycling flowers from temples and mosques.
It gives marginalized women a chance to earn livelihoods and be respected in their communities through collecting temple ceremonial flowers tossed into the Ganges and turning them into sustainable incense.
Over eight million tonnes of flowers are discarded in the river every year for religious purposes. This is contributing to the pollution of the Ganges, which provides drinking water for over 420 million people.
Help Us Green
Help Us Green has come up with the world’s first profitable solution to the monumental temple waste problem: flowercycling.
Women working with Help Us Green collect floral-waste daily from temples.
The waste is up-cycled to produce organic fertilizers, natural incense and biodegradable packaging material.
Till date, 11,060 metric tonnes of temple-waste has been flowercycled and 110 metric tonnes of chemical pesticides that enter the river through temple waste have been offset.
So is the income of 73 manual scavenger families has increased at least six-fold.
A total of 365 families have been impacted by Help Us Green through increased living standards and stable incomes.
By 2021, Help Us Green, which plans to expand to Bangladesh, and Nepal, aims to provide livelihoods to 5,100 women and recycle 51 tonnes of temple waste daily.
Nov, 28, 2018
The three bin solution
Mains Paper 2: Governance | Government policies & interventions for development in various sectors & issues arising out of their design & implementation
From the UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Various laws for waste management in India and the need for segregating hazardous waste from household waste
Context
Need for better solid waste management
With changing lifestyles, our homes are awash with different chemicals and products which, often without us being aware, are corrosive, explosive, flammable or toxic
These are dangerous wastes that need to be kept out of the wet and dry waste streams
They are harmful not only for our health but also for the environment if not disposed of properly
Lead exposure risk
Leftover paints and varnishes are examples of common polluting wastes in homes
They often contain toxic heavy metals and flammable solvents
Lead, a highly toxic metal, is found in lead-based paints which are often used on walls, toys and art supplies
Young children are particularly vulnerable as even low levels of lead exposure can cause cognitive disabilities in children
WHO lists lead exposure as one of the top 10 environmental health threats globally
Many countries have phased out lead from their paints. In November 2016
India brought in a regulation which allowed a maximum of 90 ppm lead content in paints
A study by Toxic Links published in October 2018 shows that the concentration of lead in paints manufactured by small and medium enterprises in India remains very high
They found paint samples with as high as 199,345 ppm lead content — more than 2,000 times the maximum limit
Rules for safe disposal of different kinds of wastes
There are rules galore for domestic hazardous waste with quite a bit of overlap in coverage for different types of waste
Domestic hazardous waste comes under the ambit of Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules 2016
Hazardous waste generated by industries and large offices is separately covered under the Hazardous Waste Rules 2016
Some biomedical waste is included in the definition of domestic hazardous waste, but only waste from healthcare establishments is covered under the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules 2016
Similarly E-waste Management Rules 2016 are applicable to e-waste including computers, printers, TV, fluorescent and other mercury-containing lamps, while lead acid batteries from home inverters and cars come under Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules 2001
Weak implementation
It is the responsibility of the municipal authorities under the SWM Rules 2016, to collect hazardous waste quarterly or periodically, and/or set up deposit centres, where such waste can be dropped off by waste generators
The authorities must also ensure safe storage of the waste and its transportation to the hazardous waste disposal facility
But the rules lose their significance because there are hardly any deposit centres for domestic hazardous waste
The Biomedical Waste Management Rules 2016 require safe disposal of only healthcare waste
While only 10-25 per cent of biomedical waste is infectious or hazardous, if not properly handled, it presents the physical, chemical and microbiological risk to the general population as well as those who handle this waste
Discarded hazardous medical waste leads to the unintended release of drug-resistant microorganisms in the environment
Drug resistance increasing
According to the WHO, in 2016, 490,000 persons developed multi-drug resistant TB globally and drug resistance is starting to complicate the fight against HIV and malaria, as well
A WHO report also shows that there were 65,000 cases of multidrug-resistant and Rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis in India in 2017
Way forward
With changing lifestyles, our homes are awash with different chemicals and products which, often without us being aware, are corrosive, explosive, flammable or toxic
These are dangerous wastes that need to be kept out of the wet and dry waste streams
They are harmful not only for our health but also for the environment if not disposed of properly
People should start keeping three bins for waste: Dry, wet and hazardous
Oct, 24, 2018
Recycle and build
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Need of recycling C&D waste in India and ways for doing that
Context
Problem of construction & demolition waste
The growing menace of construction and demolition (C&D) waste in Indian cities has a harmful effect on the environment and public health
C&D Waste Management Rules were notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change in March 2016
For these to be translated into action, municipal corporations, municipalities and other urban local bodies need to prepare waste management plans, notify bye-laws with penalties for non-compliance, and put in place enforcement mechanisms
Facilitating the recycling of C&D waste has to be an important plank of the waste management plans
Steps that need to be taken
Waste generators must be made aware of the nature of the hazard posed by C&D waste as cooperation from the community
Compared with municipal solid waste, it causes more traffic congestion and also pollution from dust
People must understand that as water gets trapped in the debris, this becomes a breeding ground for mosquitoes and no amount of spraying can reach the hidden pockets of water
They also have to be made aware that as lakes, stormwater drains, ponds and other water bodies get choked, the city becomes more vulnerable to floods
Dumping C&D waste in lakes for encroachment, a common practice in large cities, also results in loss of wetlands which are necessary for water purification
Unmixed discards can almost all be put to use
The deconstruction of buildings enables a much larger recovery of unmixed materials for reuse than mechanical demolition
The Report on Resource Efficiency in the Indian Construction Sector by GIZ and Development Alternatives (2015) points out that manual demolition by hammer and pickaxe is the norm in northern India, primarily due to the higher rates of reuse of building materials, especially good quality whole bricks, and the low wage rate
All waste from construction and/or demolition for large projects should be stacked on-site unmixed, with different heaps for soil, stones, bricks, cementitious waste, plastics, wood, etc to make reuse and recycling easier
This can only be accomplished with community cooperation and oversight
A proactive effort on the part of the municipalities is called for to keep C&D waste off the roads, pavements and vacant sites and encourage its transport to recycling units
The use of pavement for storing C&D materials should be limited to 2-3 months or until completion of the first slab
Thereafter progressive escalation of the ground rent should be explored, to discourage on-site stacking of construction materials
There is a need for public discussion on measures to ensure the beneficial uses of vacant sites without harming the rights of site owners but supporting the rights of neighbours for a pollution-free environment
Municipalities must also remove unauthorised dumpsites on vacant land — public or private — while recovering the cost of transporting the waste to the recycling plants through a penalty from the owner
Property tax on unfenced vacant sites should be the same as the tax on a ground floor building on a similar plot area, and interest must be charged on tax dues
Unfenced plots, in any case, should be periodically cleaned or fenced for nuisance-proofing by the municipal corporation and charges added to property tax dues
Way forward
Government construction works can set an example by using the recycled products as prescribed in Sec 9 (4) of C&D Waste Management Rules (2016)
Following international practice, it is important to set standards and have quality certification for the recycled materials so that more and more builders are encouraged to use these materials and contribute to the cause of sustainable urban development
Sep, 11, 2018
Ocean Cleanup team heads to the Pacific
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Great Pacific Garbage Patch, Photodegradation
Ocean Cleanup Project and its strategy
News
The Ocean Cleanup Project
A supply ship towing a long floating boom designed to clean ocean plastic has set sail from San Francisco for a test run ahead of a trip to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
The ambitious project by The Ocean Cleanup, a Dutch non-profit group, hopes to clean up half of the garbage patch within five years once all systems are deployed.
The supply vessel was towing a 600 meter-long boom device dubbed System 001, designed to contain floating ocean plastic so it can be scooped up and recycled.
The system includes a tapered three-meter skirt to catch plastic floating just below the surface.
The main mission is to show that it works, and hopefully then in a few months from now, the first plastics will arrive back into port, which means that it becomes proven technology.
About Great Pacific Garbage Patch
The patch, also described as the Pacific trash vortex, is a gyre of marine debris particles in the central North Pacific Ocean discovered between 1985 and 1988.
The patch is characterized by exceptionally high relative pelagic concentrations of plastic, chemical sludge, and other debris that have been trapped by the currents of the North Pacific Gyre.
It consists primarily of an increase in suspended, often microscopic, particles in the upper water column.
The patch has one of the highest levels known of plastic particulates suspended in the upper water column.
Risk of Photo Degradation
As a result, it is one of several oceanic regions where researchers have studied the effects and impact of plastic photodegradation in the neustonic layer of water.
The photodegraded plastic disintegrates into ever smaller pieces while remaining a polymer. This process continues down to the molecular level.
Some plastics decompose within a year of entering the water, leaching potentially toxic chemicals such as bisphenol A, PCBs, and derivatives of polystyrene.
As it disintegrates, the plastic ultimately becomes small enough to be ingested by aquatic organisms that reside near the ocean’s surface.
Aug, 29, 2018
Cities at crossroads: No more cover-ups
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Not much
Increasing number of landfill sites of waste in Indian cities and their ill effects on human health as well as environment
Context
Managing solid waste in cities
There are two separate challenges of solid waste management in our cities
One, managing the continuous flow of solid waste on a daily basis
Two, dealing with the legacy of neglect which has resulted in garbage hills having been built up at dumpsites that were meant for waste processing and landfills
Lanfills: Overburdened by garbage
The sites for landfills were originally located outside of the cities, but as the cities have expanded the dumpsites are now almost inside the cities
It is estimated that more than 10,000 hectares of urban land is locked in these dumpsites in India
Delhi’s open dumps at Ghazipur (69 metres high), Okhla (55 metres high) and Bhalswa (56 metres high), for example, are all much higher than the permissible height limit of up to 20 metres
They are also way past their capacity for holding the amount of waste for which they were set up
Bad effects of landfills
In the absence of exposure to air, the high-rises of rotting mixed waste on these sites generate methane (a greenhouse gas) and other landfill gases which contribute to global warming
They also produce leachate (liquid generated by airless waste), which pollutes groundwater
Frequent outbreaks of fire at the dumpsites lead to air pollution
Using bio-remediation and bio-mining to get rid of waste
Bio-remediation and bio-mining are clearly specified as the first choice under Rule 15 (zj) of The Rules for the Safe Treatment of Legacy Waste in all open dumpsites and existing operational dumpsites in India
The low-cost solution of bioremediation to remove the garbage hills and their lingering ill effects permanently achieves near-zero emission of harmful gases (such as methane, hydrogen sulphide, and ammonia) and leachate
In rapid bioremediation method, the hill is terraced, grooved and then slashed to form high slices to let air into the waste and drain out leachate
Each heap is turned weekly, four times to ensure aeration of all parts of the waste and sprayed with composting microbes to accelerate biological decomposition
After four turnings, there is about 40 per cent volume reduction in the waste as the organic fraction of the original waste is degraded biologically by the bioculture
Specific microbes are also used for leachate treatment. Once the waste is stabilised, it is ready for bio-mining
Bio-mining efforts include loosening thin surface layers of the garbage hill and forming this into windrows before screening
These fractions can then be used for different purposes — for compost, road sub-grade, making RDF (Refuse Derived Fuel) pellets, recycling plastics, or inerts for landfills
Why is this method useful for growing cities?
The most valuable part of this exercise is that the land which was hosting waste dumps is now fully recovered for alternate uses
Since it is very hard to win local acceptance for new waste processing sites, the recovered land can be used for waste management
Way Forward
Capping is being projected in Indian cities as a solution to the challenges posed by our unlined open dumps even where bio-remediation and bio-mining are feasible and desirable
The Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Central Pollution Control Board should swing into action immediately to issue guidelines on the capping of dumpsites, taking account of health, environment and financial perspectives
Jun, 27, 2018
Plastic-free India is a nudge away
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Plastic Waste Management Rules (2016), Nudge theory
The editorial discusses how nudge theory can be implemented in reducing usage of plastic
Context
Change in Plastic Waste Management Rules
The Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change amended the Plastic Waste Management Rules (2016)
According to the amendment, manufacturers, suppliers, and sellers of plastic (and plastic products) across the nation will now be required to phase out, over a period of two years, all such products which have no alternative use or are non-recyclable and non-energy recoverable
This move was preceded by a state-wide ban in Maharashtra on the manufacture, usage, sale (wholesale and retail), distribution, storage and import of plastic bags and all disposable products made out of plastic
Impact of the ban on average Indian citizen
To the people employed in the industry, it could mean the shutdown of factories and potential job losses
To the consumer, it would mean choosing between alternatives that are either too expensive, impractical or not as easily available
The unrealistic timeline for the implementation of the plastic ban has caught all stakeholders unawares, making it extremely difficult to comply with
An end-to-end approach to eradicate the use and sale of plastic
NUDGING CONSUMERS
The government can nudge rather than coerce citizens to demand and use less plastic
A “nudge”, as Nobel laureate Richard Thaler defines it, is any aspect of the choice architecture that alters people’s behavior in a predictable way without forbidding any options or significantly changing their economic incentives
One way of doing this would be to give discounts to customers who bring their own bags, or reward points for not requesting a plastic bag—as opposed to fining, penalizing, or charging high prices
Normative social influence bias can be leveraged to nudge Indian citizens away from plastic
This bias taps into people’s intrinsic urge to conform and be liked by those around them
Another nudge, which has been extremely successful globally in donation scenarios, is the “opt-out model”
Here, customers would by default be considered as opted-in for non-plastic items, forcing them to manually opt-out to choose otherwise
Way forward
In 2025, it is estimated that the annual input of plastic waste from land to ocean will be over 16 million metric tons—almost 100 bags of plastic per foot of coastline in the world
Estimated 60-95% of this marine pollution comes from land-based sources (primarily plastic), resulting in the death of 100,000 marine mammals annually, apart from killing millions of birds and fish
India has indeed taken a step in the right direction, with 18 states and Union territories having imposed a complete ban on plastic
But we also need to realize that a ban can only be a means to an end, and not the end itself
Jun, 26, 2018
Reduce, segregate: On plastic ban
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
World Environment Day, Bureau of Indian Standards
Scourge of plastic waste in India & world and methods that can reduce it
Context
Plastic ban in Maharashtra
Maharashtra has put a ban on several consumer articles made of plastic, after a three-month notice period to industry and users
It is being termed as naturally disruptive and extreme
Need for reducing plastic usage
Today, stemming the plastic tide is a national imperative
India hosted this year’s World Environment Day and PM Modi made a high-profile pledge, to international acclaim, that it would do away with all single-use plastics by 2022
Worldwide, the problem has got out of hand, with only 9% of about nine billion tonnes of plastic produced getting recycled
What led to the ban?
India has an uninspiring record when it comes to handling waste
India’s plastic waste is estimated officially at 26,000 tonnes a day
If the Centre and the States had got down to dealing with the existing regulations on plastic waste management and municipal solid waste, a ban would not even have become necessary
Specifications for the recycling of different types of plastics were issued two decades ago by the Bureau of Indian Standards
What needs to be done?
There has to be an effort on a war footing to segregate this waste at source
Priority should be given to stop the generation of mixed waste, which prevents recovery of plastics
Companies covered by extended producer responsibility provisions must be required to take back their waste
Incentives to reduce the use of plastic carry bags, single-use cups, plates and cutlery must be in place
Retailers must be required to switch to paper bags
Carry bag production using cloth can create more jobs than machines using plastic pellets
The Urban Development Secretary in each State, who heads the monitoring committee under the rules, should be mandated to produce a monthly report on how much plastic waste is collected, including details of the types of chemicals involved, and the disposal methods
Such compulsory disclosure norms will maintain public pressure on the authorities, including the State Pollution Control Boards
Way Forward
Plastics became popular because they are inexpensive, can be easily produced and offer great convenience
Their wild popularity has turned them into a scourge
We need substitutes for plastic, incentives to re-use, and better waste disposal
Jun, 07, 2018
Life in plastic: on waste management framework
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016
This article critically analyses policy vacuum in India in plastic waste management.
Context
Dismal Framework on Paper only
The Solid Waste Management Rules and the Plastic Waste Management Rules of 2016, which built on previous regulations, mostly remain on paper.
The Centre’s somewhat liberal estimate shows over 60% of about 25,000 tonnes of plastic waste generated daily is collected.
That essentially means a staggering 10,000 tonnes of trash is being released into the environment, a lot of it going into the sea. Also, not every piece of plastic collected by the system is scientifically processed.
It is no surprise, therefore, that the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna river system is on the UN map of 10 rivers worldwide that collectively carry the bulk of the plastic waste into the oceans.
The effects are evident: they threaten marine life and the well-being of people, as microplastics are now found even in drinking water.
Outreaching with Environment (Protection) Act: Need of the hour
In their response to the crisis, communities and environmentally minded individuals are ahead of governments and municipal authorities.
But, valuable as they are, voluntary efforts cannot achieve what systemic reform can.
It is the Centre’s responsibility to ensure that the Environment (Protection) Act, the overarching law that enables anti-pollution rules to be issued, is implemented in letter and spirit.
Ideally, regulation should help stop the manufacture of single-use plastic articles such as carry bags and cutlery, and encourage the use of biodegradable materials.
The Real Challenge
The provisions of the Plastic Waste Management Rules require manufacturers of compostable bags to get a certificate from the Central Pollution Control Board, but this has not stopped counterfeit products from entering the market.
Local bodies mandated under rules to ensure segregation, collection and transfer of waste to registered recyclers have spectacularly failed to fulfil their responsibilities.
The State Level Monitoring Committees provided for under the rules have not been made accountable. The waste management framework is dysfunctional, and India and the world face a plastics crisis.
Solving it will take more than slogans
Jan, 18, 2018
Govt seeks tech solutions for waste management
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Waste to wealth concept
Rising domestic as well as industrial waste in India and problems associated with it
News
Concept note in waste management technologies
The science and technology ministry has called for a concept note in waste management technologies by 31 January from interested academic institutes and research & development (R&D) organizations
The government is seeking technological solutions for managing the huge untreated waste across the country
The waste is not only leading to poor sanitary conditions but also damaging the environment
What is government seeking?
The government is looking at organizations to participate in developing technologies for biomedical waste and for setting up a demo plant for hazardous waste in an institute or university
It is also looking at technologies to address agricultural waste (stubble management) to find an alternative to crop burning
The move is part of government’s concept of ‘waste to wealth’
Electronic waste is another focus area as the government is looking at developing “simple indigenous material recovery technology for specific applications (precious and other metals, plastics, glass and rare earths) in collaboration with industry
Besides these, other major areas that are on the government’s radar are urban and rural solid waste and industrial waste
Problem of waste management
Around 62 million tonnes (mt) of solid waste is generated in India every year but only 43 mt is collected and a mere 12 mt treated
About 15,000 tonnes of plastic waste is generated every day but of that, only 9,000 tonnes is collected and processed
India generates 1.7 million tonnes of e-waste annually, which is rising at the rate of 5% a year
Dec, 29, 2017
Bali declares ‘garbage emergency’ amid sea of waste
Image source
degradation, environmental impact assessment
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Clean seas campaign, Global Partnership on Marine Litter
Harmful effects of plastic waste on marine life and ways to reduce it
News
World’s second-biggest contributor to marine debris
A colossal 1.29 million metric tons is estimated to be produced annually by Indonesia
The archipelago of more than 17,000 islands is the world’s second-biggest contributor to marine debris after China
Garbage emergency
The waves of plastic flooding into rivers and oceans have been causing problems for years
It has been clogging waterways in cities, increasing the risk of floods, and injuring or killing marine animals who ingest or become trapped by plastic packaging
Microplastics can contaminate fish which, if eaten by humans, could cause health problems including cancer
The problem has grown so bad that officials in Bali last month declared a “garbage emergency” across a six-kilometer stretch of coast
Clean Seas campaign
Indonesia is one of nearly 40 countries that are part of UN Environment’s Clean Seas campaign
As part of its commitment, the Indonesian government has pledged to reduce marine plastic waste by 70 % by 2025
Back2Basics
UNEP Clean Seas Campaign
The campaign aims to halt the tide of plastic trash polluting the oceans
UN Environment launched #CleanSeas in February 2017, with the aim of engaging governments, the general public, civil society and the private sector in the fight against marine plastic litter
Over the next five years, UNEP will address the root-cause of marine litter by targeting the production and consumption of non-recoverable and single-use plastic
The campaign contributes to the goals of the Global Partnership on Marine Litter, a voluntary open-ended partnership for international agencies, governments, businesses, academia, local authorities and non-governmental organizations hosted by UN Environment
Dec, 02, 2017
[pib] Star Rating Protocol for Garbage Free Cities Introduced
Mains Paper 1: Social issues | Urbanization , their problems & remedies
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important:
Star rating protocol for garbage free cities
Urbanisation challenges
News:
A guide Book for Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) on Bulk Solid Waste Generator’s Compliance of Solid Waste Management Rules 2016, and the online database for states and cities, both pertaining to SBM Urban was launched
The guidebook lays out the roles and responsibilities of bulk waste generators and will handhold ULBs in implementing the SWM Rules,
While the online database will henceforth capture data directly from states and cities online, regarding their progress on SBM components, thereby enhancing the robustness and transparency of Mission monitoring.
The star rating protocol is different from the Swachh Survekshan ranking survey in that it will allow multiple cities to be awarded the same star rating, and is expected to be formally introduced by the Ministry in the next few weeks.
Major takeaways:
In order to enthuse cities with a spirit of healthy competition, the concept of a star rating protocol for garbage free cities was introduced during the workshop.
Given its potential as a developmental cum aspirational tool for cities to incrementally improve their overall cleanliness, while working towards a garbage-free status, this is expected to greatly enthuse the city administrators.
The focus on the issue of cleanliness of community and public toilets, there is a concerted drive to seek user feedback for CT/PTs through the Google toilet locator and Swachhata app.
Uploading all community / public toilets in cities on Google maps under the Business listing category, integrating with Swachhata app
Sep, 21, 2016
National wastewater reuse policy sought- II
Source: The report ‘Closing the water loop: Reuse of treated wastewater in urban India’- by the global consulting firm PwC
Ground water: Regulatory intervention is key to prevent industries from over-exploiting groundwater
The current low cost of exploiting groundwater makes reuse unviable and at the same time, irrecoverably depletes groundwater resources
Norms: The Ministry of Environment and Ministry of Water Resources should work together to define quality norms for different grades of industrial water
This would help standardise the design of reuse systems nationwide
Historically, infrastructure development in the water sector has been fully funded by the Central Government
For PPP (public-private partnership) structures to evolve in this sector, significant Govt interventions are required to create a favourable environment for private sector participation
Sep, 21, 2016
National wastewater reuse policy sought- I
Source: The report ‘Closing the water loop: Reuse of treated wastewater in urban India’- by the global consulting firm PwC
Why policy? To help address the perennial concern of urban water stress by mandating targets and laying out legislative, regulatory and financial measures to hit those targets
Urban growth: Country is expected to add approximately 404 million new urban dwellers between now and 2050
This rapid urban growth will be linked with higher industrial output and greater energy demand thus adding to the urban water stress
Institutionalising the reuse of treated wastewater could go a long way in helping utilities to address this challenge in an effective manner
Discuss: With rapid urbanisation, municipal solid waste and waste water is increasingly generated. What could be done to tackle this mess in present context so as to balance urbanisation with the environment?
Apr, 06, 2016
Govt. notifies new rules on waste management
News: The Environment Ministry has notified rules to ensure that the solid waste generated by some groups are treated and recycled
Municipal bodies will be allowed to charge user fees and levy spot fines for littering and non-segregation
There is a key provision is to formalise the profession of rag-picking, who form a critical arm of society
Groups: Hotels, residential colonies, bulk producers of consumer goods, ports, railway stations, airports and pilgrimage spots
Significance: The rules on solid waste management have been amended after 16 years
Criticism: There is no binding provision on fines
Mar, 30, 2016
Rules to manage construction & demolition waste
Context: Govt notified The Construction and Demolition Waste Management Rules, 2016
Also include barring people from dumping such waste on roadsides and mandatory recycling
Rules stipulate that building permits will be given only after a waste management plan is provided to authorities
Aim: Reducing dust pollution that is linked to a spurt in respiratory diseases in big cities
Mar, 19, 2016
New plastic waste management rules
Context: The Plastic Waste Management (PWM) Rules 2016, issued by the Union environment ministry
Highlights: They bring the country’s gram panchayats into the picture
It introduced the concept of extended producer responsibility (EPR)
Under the new ERP concept, producers are responsible for collecting waste generated from their products
It also banned plastic carry bags thinner than 50 microns
Feb, 12, 2016
Centre makes it mandatory for power firms to buy from solid waste plants
Context: Prime Minister’s Swachh Bharat Mission
Background: About 1.68 lakh tonnes of solid waste is collected across the country
What’s in the news? – It is mandatory for power distribution companies to buy electricity from power plants fuelled by solid waste
Why? – Power discoms were not willing to buy electricity from solid waste-run power plants
Objective: To generate 700 megawatts of electricity from solid waste-run plants in the next 5 years
Oct, 02, 2015
Swachh Bharat: plan to produce power, compost from solid waste
The Urban Development Ministry is planning to generate electricity and compost from municipal solid waste.
A proposal will be introduced before Cabinet to provide Market Development Assistance on sale of city compost to farmers.
Ministry of Power will amend the Electricity Act 2003 to enable mandatory purchase of power generated from municipal solid waste.
The Power Ministry was finalising a tariff rate that would help “waste to energy projects” sustain in the market.
The Ministry is also finalising the pricing model for the compost produced out of city trash, and it would be sold to farmers on subsidised rates.
Jun, 12, 2015
Delhi reels under 15,000 tonnes of waste
Why? because 12,000 sanitation workers are refusing to work without getting their salaries.
The Municipal corporations have the power to invoke the Essential Services Maintenance (ESMA) Act and force the sanitation staff to resume work but that’s far from their mind.
Typhoid, jaundice and skin allergies are some of the most common health problems that can occur.
Post-trifurcation of Delhi, the corporations, mainly East and North, have been struggling to streamline basic services like sanitation.
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