tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53806405965996598822024-03-29T07:02:37.024-04:00Sustainable Solid Waste Management in IndiaThis blog: Sustainable Solid Waste Management in India is the product of research at the Earth Engineering Center (EEC), Waste-to-Energy Research and Technology Council (WTERT), Columbia University - Ranjith Annepu
Key: Recycling Composting Aerobic Anaerobic Biomethanation Landfill Dumpsite Unsanitary Sanitary Garbage Plastics organic disposal pollution generation data household municipalRanjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-13122873663979927322014-04-13T16:47:00.000-04:002014-04-13T17:01:06.636-04:00Recognition to modern day Alchemists!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Waste managers are modern day alchemists! But, their work and the industry don't get deserved attention from the wider community!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3a/William_Fettes_Douglas_-_The_Alchemist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3a/William_Fettes_Douglas_-_The_Alchemist.jpg" height="320" width="247" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alchemists tried turning base metals into gold and other precious metals, giving rise to today's Chemistry. Waste managers are however not just trying to, but are successful in turning "waste" into resources.</td></tr>
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Two questions to waste professionals reading this:</div>
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<b>1. How do you understand or perceive the work you are doing in the context of our world's sustainable development goals?</b><br />
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<b>Context:</b> "Sustainability is the ability to meet present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs".<br />
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<b>2. What aspects of your work might the wider community be interested in knowing about?</b><br />
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<b>Context:</b> Lack of recognition in the wider public generally leads to decrease in the flow of new talent in to the industry and to decreased investments on the long run. Keeping this in mind, if you decided to talk about your work with public for the next 5 years, what aspects of your work do you think they might be interested in knowing about?</div>
Ranjith Annepuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10057897153179008657noreply@blogger.com128tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-69750649002869330362014-04-02T06:38:00.002-04:002014-04-02T06:38:27.172-04:00Applied vs. Fundamental Research<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As much as I am a fan of fundamental research, which is defined as "gathering knowledge for knowledge's sake", I would like to spend my time on Applied research. I think those who get to do fundamental research are lucky and gifted.<br />
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For others, who are not so lucky, and have decided to spend time on applied research because of their own choice or chance, here's a suggestion:<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">"Please always think about how your research will help the bigger picture. Always have that in mind.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">At some point in your research, if possible at the beginning, define whose problems and what kind of problems you want to solve using your research."</span></div>
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All the best,</div>
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We have a lot of work to do!</div>
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Our future depends upon your success...</div>
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Ranjith Annepuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10057897153179008657noreply@blogger.com44tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-26060939504501715162014-03-30T15:27:00.001-04:002014-03-30T15:27:17.522-04:00Opportunities and Challenges for Waste-to-Energy in India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Original post on WTERT's blog can be accessed <a href="http://wtert.blogspot.in/2014/03/opportunities-and-challenges-for-waste.html">here</a>. This is my first (re)post about waste management in India after starting <i><a href="http://wastewise.be/">be Waste Wise</a></i>.<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>A version of this post first appeared on the Waste Management World Magazine's December, 2013 Issue under the title "<a href="http://www.waste-management-world.com/articles/print/volume-14/issue-6/wmw-special/a-billion-reasons-for-waste-to-energy-in-india.html" target="_blank">A billion reasons for waste-to-energy in India</a>".</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Twenty three Indian cities will each generate more than 1,000 metric tonnes of municipal solid waste per day in the next five years. They will cumulatively generate 93,000 tonnes of MSW every day. (1) At this scale, solid waste management (SWM) systems without waste-to-energy (WTE) combustion technology will not be able to safely and economically treat and recover energy from post-recycled waste. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">In response to this need, the first among the third generation of WTE plants in India has started operations in December, 2011. Six more plants are in construction, 5 have been tendered and 3 projects are in conceptual phase. In the next five years, tens of projects are expected to complete conceptual planning and design phases.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Lack of data and awareness, and trained human resources are the biggest challenges to WTE in India. At some point, these challenges will be overcome. The question is when and who will take the initiative? The government, industry or public? If we wait until public demands reach the intensity that will move governments or the industry, we would have already impacted many lives adversely.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">The large scale of the waste problem, a need for safe disposal, and availability of affordable technology are the three biggest opportunities for WTE. The Government of India, various ministries, supporting organizations and the solid waste management industry have an opportunity to improve public health and quality of life, conserve environmental resources, mitigate climate change, and generate energy with the aid of this technology. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Introduction</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">In my most recent publication, (2) I documented the social impact of India's recent waste crisis on its citizens. To solve the crisis, I suggested maintaining a holistic approach to meet social ends using appropriate means. I argued for the necessity to pay attention to short, medium and long-term local and national priorities. As an extension to that line of thought, this article will focus on waste-to-energy as a technology which can provide a major solution. I also discuss how the technology can help India achieve its national priorities - health and quality of life, environmental conservation, and resource efficiency.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Opportunities</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Scale of the problem</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Every day, urban India generates 188,500 tonnes of MSW (or 68.8 million tonnes per year) and the waste generation increases by 50% every decade. (1) Some of this waste will be recovered by an army of informal recyclers (20% in large cities, lesser in smaller cities (3)), leaving more than 80% to reach open dumpsites where it causes damaging public health, deteriorating the environment, and causes climate change.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Landfill space is hard to find in and around India's urban centers. Dumpsites in almost all cities are already handling more waste than they can hold. Finding new landfills near cities is nearly impossible due to the sheer lack of space for Locally Unwanted Land Uses (LULUs) like waste management because of the NIMBY phenomenon, the population density and the scale of increasing urban sprawl, and the track record of dumpsite operations and maintenance in India. (2) Every municipal official who attended WTERT-India's International Brainstorming Session in 2012 asked for help with this issue. Therefore, reducing the amount of waste that goes to dumpsites at a scale that can make a difference is of a high priority.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">From the experiences of second generation waste management facilities in India, built around the year 2000, the SWM industry learnt that the role of composting in reducing waste to landfill was overestimated. Composting was considered to be an obvious choice due to the high organic waste content (51%) in Indian MSW. (1) However, due to a lack of source separation, the yield of composting plants or mechanical biological treatment (MBT) was only 6-7% making them economically unfeasible. Rejects from these plants were more than 60% of the input stream (rest of the mass transfer was in the form of escaped water vapor and carbon dioxide during the process). (1)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">For the next 20 years, the only way India's large quantities of post-recycled mixed municipal waste can be treated in India is through a combination of MBT, WTE and sanitary landfilling (SLF). This is not to discount other technologies which are effective at smaller scale, such as house-hold and institutional scale biomethanation, and kitchen waste composting. However, due to the number of these units that are required to make a significant impact, propagating these technologies takes decades. Until then, they will not be able to make much of a difference to the amount of untreated waste that will go to open dumps. However, with consistent support, these technologies will definitely improve the sustainability of India's waste management systems.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Gasification, Pyrolysis and Plasma Arc might become fierce contenders to WTE combustion in future, but they are still emerging technologies. Gasification has not yet been proven to work in India. Pyrolysis and Plasma Arc suffer a similar setback around most of the world. India's only Pyrolysis plant in Pune recently came under scrutiny due to its failure to run at capacity. Studying the reasons for this failure, which are currently unknown can provide a better picture about the future of emerging technologies.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Need for Safe Disposal</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Nationwide protests against the present situation of waste management and demands environmental justice through safer waste management practices (2) are also one of the greatest opportunities for WTE.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Disease, air pollution due to landfill fires and water pollution due to leachate from dumpsites happen due to the presence of organic waste and carbon compounds in the waste. They can all be avoided by achieving near complete combustion of waste inside WTE plants that are well regulated. In the city of Mumbai alone, open burning of MSW and landfill fires emit an estimated 10,000 TEQ grams of dioxins/furans and contributes to 20% of the city's air pollution due to particulate matter (PM), carbon monoxide (CO) and hydrocarbons (HCs). In comparison, landfill fires emit 35,200 nanograms (ng) toxic equivalents (TEQ) of dioxins/furans per kilogram (kg) of waste burnt in comparison to 0.25*10-9 nanograms TEQ/kg combusted in 127 WTE facilities in France, which together emitted 4 grams TEQ of dioxins from the combustion of 16 million tonnes per year of waste. The difference between these sources is in the order of magnitude of 1014. (1)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Technology availability</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">India now has access to affordable WTE technology, thanks to numerous Chinese and South East Asian companies with operational plants. A European WTE company has also recently established its office in India. They are able to provide their technology at prices affordable by Indian cities by sourcing their components indigenously, and by standardizing plant design. (4) The above technologies are available at one-third the price of WTE technology in the U.S. or Europe. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">As more successful WTE companies establish their presence in India, the country's access to the technology will increase along with our knowledge and expertise. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Integrable Informal Recycling Sector</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">In India, one of the reasons for employing MBT technology before WTE is to make waste input into WTE homogenous. (1) Increasing source separation through door-to-door collection employing the informal sector will make waste homogenous, which will avoid the need for MBT before WTE. More importantly, inclusion of the informal recycling system will improve sustainability of the system in terms of resource efficiency, and climate change mitigation while providing livelihood to urban poor. (1)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">An underutilized opportunity in India, the informal recycling sector can be integrated into the formal system by training and employing waste pickers to conduct door-to-door collection of wastes and allowing them to sell the recyclables they collected. When properly managed and monitored, the informal sector along with mechanical biological treatment and WTE can achieve landfill diversion rates of up to 93.5% in a short span of time. In some Indian cities, informal recycling sector is the first readily available tool if the city decides to improve SWM. (1)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">The role of the informal sector in SWM in developing nations is increasingly being recognized, and there is growing consensus that the informal sector should be integrated into the formal system. (1) India is at the forefront of organizing the informal sector, as a result of which, we have an informal recycling sector that can conform to reliable work and schedules. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Politics</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">There are a handful of local governments which are leading the way in improving waste management. The steps taken to solve New Delhi’s waste management problem is laudable. India would not have had its only operating WTE plant without the kind of leadership and determination showcased in Delhi. This plant was built in 2011, at a time when the need for WTE plants was felt all over India. 1,700 tonnes of Delhi’s waste enters this facility every day to generate about 18 MW of electricity. The successful operation of this facility reinvigorated dormant projects across the nation. (2)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">An announcement on granting viability-gap-funding for WTE projects made by India's Finance Minister in his 2013 budget speech catalyzed action towards developing a promotional framework for WTE. India's Planning Commission and the Ministry of Urban Development organized meetings with private stakeholders to understand their needs. The results of these meetings are currently unknown.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Challenges</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Lack of Data and Awareness</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Lack of data and awareness impacts every aspect of India's waste management industry in general, not just WTE. Other than the National Environmental and Engineering Research Institute's (NEERI) survey performed eight years ago about waste composition and generation in 59 cities, there is no other reliable data available. The data generated as part of my research (1) is only the best estimate, but not the measured value. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Owing to the lack of reliable data about quantity, composition, calorific value and seasonal variations of MSW, municipalities are struggling to come up with a structured and a well-moderated response to their own needs (5). Lack of data decreases the clarity in tender requirements put forth by municipalities and leads to miscalculations on the part of private parties. It was also one of the main reasons for the failures of many first generation (built between 1960s and 1990s) and second generation waste management facilities (built around 2000), regardless of whether they employed composting or WTE. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Lack of operational data from the first and second generation WTE facilities, all of which failed, continues to impact the scope of current projects and the financing and regulatory policy. Lack of consistent operational data is the reason for improperly conceived projects whether it is regarding negotiations about preferential tariffs, tipping fees, or risk and profit sharing. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Due to a lack of awareness about the technology landscape and best practices, municipalities expect magic wand solutions. This is also because of technology salesmen who promise zero residue, zero emissions, and zero leachate (5). Such false promises can be counteracted by information dissemination through training and education. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Lack of Consultants and Trained Professionals</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Tender documents are often not clearly scoped, are not thorough or are just copied from existing tenders from other cities and do not consider local requirements. This is mainly due to the lack of consultants and professionals who have expertise in designing WTE projects. This leads to the stipulation of unreasonable eligibility criteria, one-sided agreements and choosing the wrong partners. (5)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Improper finances</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Many first and second generation WTE projects failed because of irregularity in payments. Payments from most municipalities are delayed by 3 - 4 months due to various reasons. Some are even delayed for more than 6 months. (5) This puts enormous pressure on the liquid cash reserves of private stakeholders who have to continue providing services and paying their employees. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Lack of Industry Coordination</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">The SWM industry in India is young and growing, with a significant influx of new players from other sectors. They all face similar challenges while developing projects, but do not have mechanisms to achieve consensus on their basic requirements, so that those can be communicated to decision makers. WTERT-India was formed to become a community of practitioners which can mediate between industry and governments.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Conclusions</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">A clear trend observed during India's recent waste crisis is that the outbreak of epidemic and public protests around India are happening in the biggest cities in their respective regions. (2) When we look at converging factors such as improving public health, scale of the problem and time at hand, there is no confusion about WTE being the solution.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">WTE is expected to be a major waste treatment option for many Indian cities. While self-reporting and regulating emissions is a must, WTE will become the right choice for India when it becomes more inclusive, and can increase public understanding of the technology.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Municipal governments should practice caution in scoping projects, choosing private partners, and carry out </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">transparent tendering processes by hiring reputed and knowledgeable consultants.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Meanwhile, the national government must design reasonable and strong regulatory framework for emissions monitoring, and policy for integrating the informal recycling sector. It should not hesitate to seek guidance from other Asian countries which have already passed through this phase of WTE development.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Bibliography</span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">1. Annepu, Ranjith Kharvel. <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable/Solid/Waste/Management/in/India_Final.pdf" target="_blank">Sustainable Solid Waste Management in India</a>. January 10, 2012.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">2. <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Observations%20from%20India's%20Crisis%20-%20Ranjith%20Annepu,%20Feb%204%202013.pdf" target="_blank">Observations from India's Waste Crisis</a>. Waste-to-Energy Research and Technology Council (WTERT)- India. November 2012.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">3. <a href="http://www.chintan-india.org/" target="_blank">Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">4. Vogler, Thomas. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRGN8C7ivJY" target="_blank">Second Brainstorming Session on Short, Medium and Long Term Solutions to India's Waste Management</a>. 2012.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">5. Sastry, D. B. S. S. R., K., Sreenivasa Rao and Annepu, Ranjith Kharvel. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMzlyI9T8Iw. (link not working)</span></div>
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Ranjith Annepuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10057897153179008657noreply@blogger.com81tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-83665140944093660562013-06-10T03:08:00.000-04:002013-06-10T10:35:28.103-04:00Waste Wise: Dialog - Leadership - Change<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello Everyone,<br />
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This is my first post addressed to my readers and it is a long one, because we never spoke. I am unable to put in more time into this blog as I am working on an entirely new initiative where we are creating something new for the first time - from ground up (read below). I had a similar dedication to this blog.<br />
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I started this blog because I had to share my research findings. Back then, I was learning about waste management for the first time. As part of that learning, I was bringing together lots of information and knowledge on the subject of waste management in India and I had to share them with everyone. After all, my research was partially funded by public money. If not for this blog, the only way I could have shared my research was after my <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">thesis</a> was published. However, I had to share my findings as they happened and that was my basic motivation behind this blog. (Read <a href="http://swmindia.blogspot.com/2012/01/need-for-research-blog.html">Need for a Research Blog</a>)<br />
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After I finished this research, I continued working with the Earth Engineering Center and the <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/">Global Waste-to-Energy Research and Technology Council</a> (WTERT). I was not the first person at WTERT to work on recycling, but I probably am the first person there to work on informal recycling. This was possible because of my middle income country background, where informal recycling is widely practiced. Later, I worked with the Cason Family Foundation (in a commitment with the <a href="http://www.clintonglobalinitiative.org/">Clinton Global Initiative</a>) in bringing together all published resources on informal recycling to one place. Working on this, we realized it was very difficult job to do manually and we gradually moved away from it. We then worked together to start a global landfill mapping project. I was majorly involved in finding existing data and in figuring out how to use latest technology from different spheres (mainly GIS and satellites) to find landfills. We later pivoted again and set-up the Sustainable WasteResources International (<a href="http://www.wasteresources.org/">www.wasteresources.org</a>) (still in a commitment with the Clinton Global Initiative). This initiative has an enormous potential to serve the waste management industry. You can learn more from its <a href="http://wasteresources.org/">website</a>.<br />
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While working with SWRI, I also worked with the <a href="http://www.worldbank.org/">World Bank</a> on developing a diagnostic framework which could be used by consultants or government officials to understand every aspect of the waste management system in their city. The framework was designed for cities in low and middle income countries. This was one of my best times, as whatever work I did could be put to great use. My time there was impactful! The framework was immediately shared with and put to use by various organizations.<br />
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With just as much dedication and time I put into this blog or some times even more, I am now working on a new initiative called Waste Wise (<a href="http://www.wastewise.be/">www.wastewise.be</a>). We call it Be Waste Wise. This was the result of my travels in India and Ghana and a pivotal moment in Washington D.C. There is a great need for waste management expertise around the world and there is a great deal of expertise existing in the world. The existing expertise however was concentrated in small pockets. However much these experts tried, they did not have a tool or platform to reach enough audience. I have known some of the best experts in waste management in the U.S., Europe and India and they tried their best to get their information and knowledge out of their networks. Their efforts deserved more impact. I realized this while I was working on a report called "<a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Observations%20from%20India's%20Crisis%20-%20Ranjith%20Annepu,%20Feb%204%202013.pdf">Observations from India's Waste Crisis</a>".<br />
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It was a story that everyone in India had to know. But, I had no avenue to share it! I approached various outlets of information. I was successful to a great extent. The Hindu, India's leading newspaper - published <a href="http://thehindu.com/opinion/lead/time-to-put-garbage-on-the-table/article4724987.ece">an Op-ed</a> on this and the Times of India, the world's largest circulation English newspaper - ran <a href="http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-02-27/kochi/37330017_1_waste-management-urban-sprawl-new-landfill-sites">a story</a> on the report, which together provided the best platform for the report to get to my target audience - the citizens of India. Waste & Recycling News - the best source of waste management information in the U.S. - featured this report in their May, 2013 print issue. The South Asia Journal, D-Waste, and BioEnergy Consult, all of them helped me get this report out. But, only I know how much time and effort that took.<br />
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After so much work, the impact I could create was not even a drop in the ocean. Waste management is a global challenge today. According to the U.N., it is a cross-cutting mega issue. It is one of the biggest challenges that we as a species have to address. It becomes even more complex when we realize that the solutions to this problem are based on local conditions. So, we now have a global problem with local solutions, which cannot be solved by one person or one single organization or for that matter any one nation. However, we do not have a global platform to convene leadership on this issue. We do not even have a platform where thought leaders, practitioners and communicators in waste management can share their existing knowledge and expertise. The only way they can share their expertise is through conferences or long PDF documents.<br />
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From my experience of publishing a nearly 200 page <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">report</a>, I know that none but fellow researchers or consultants read through such long reports. Decision makers who are confronted with unforeseen challenges on the field have lesser encouragement to go through long reports. Their preferred method of knowing about waste is to attend conferences. In today's world ruled by information technology, conferences for the sake of knowledge or expertise dissemination are inefficient. They provide great avenues for networking, which in itself drives many projects forward. But, for the sake of knowledge or expertise dissemination, they are inefficient economically, and environmentally.<br />
<br />
This is when we started <a href="http://wastewise.be/">Waste Wise</a>. We are organizing online video panel discussions between the best in waste management. These panels will be broadcast live and our audience can interact with the panelists using the Twitter hashtag <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23WasteWise&src=hash">#wastewise</a>. They will also be available for future viewing along with a full transcript of the panel, a summary and an opinion article based on it.<br />
<br />
We are convening leaders around global issues with local relevance. For example, we have Prof. Nickolas Themelis, Prof. Paul Brunner, Perinaz-Bhada Tata and Prof. Morton Barlaz to talk about <a href="http://wastewise.be/ai1ec_event/solid-waste-management-and-climate-change/?instance_id=">Solid Waste Management and Climate Change</a>. There are very less people who can match the caliber or depth of knowledge of these professionals. Prof. Paul Brunner is called the father of material cycles in Industrial Ecology and Urban Metabolism. Prof. Nickolas Themelis probably had the most impact on the waste-to-energy industry world wide. He founded the Earth Engineering Center and the Global Waste-to-Energy Research and Technology Council, which has sister organizations in 14 countries, a feat for an academic organization in such a niche subject.<br />
<br />
Shawn Otto (author of Fool Me Twice: Fighting Against the Attack on Science in America and Co-founder of the U.S. Presidential Science Debates) will be talking about the <a href="http://wastewise.be/ai1ec_event/compatibility-between-recycling-and-waste-to-energy/?instance_id=">Compatibility Between Recycling and Waste-to-Energy</a>. His work on science education as an author, speaker, filmmaker, screenwriter and co-producer is unparalleled. On this panel, we also have Dr. Eileen Berenyi and Dr. Scott Kaufman (who was my lecturer of Industrial Ecology and Life Cycle Analysis at Columbia University), both Earth Engineering Center's Research Associates who have years of work on recycling and waste-to-energy in the U.S.<br />
<br />
We have Dr. Samantha MacBride (author of Recycling Reconsidered) and Tim Brownell (President of Eureka! Recycling) to discuss <a href="http://wastewise.be/ai1ec_event/recycling-in-north-american-cities/?instance_id=">Recycling in North American Cities</a>. North America, especially the U.S. achieved less than 30% recycling after more than 40 years of consistent education programs. Recycling needs discussion in the U.S., more so these days with increasing quantities of waste. On another panel called <a href="http://wastewise.be/ai1ec_event/integrating-the-informal-recycling-sector/?instance_id=">Integrating the Informal Recycling Sector</a>, we have Jane Olley and other employees of the Inter-American Development Bank, which has been the most active multi-lateral development organization in improving the lives of informal recyclers in Latin America.<br />
<br />
I am not going deep into other panels, (you can find more <a href="http://wastewise.be/">here</a>). We are closing our first series of panels with a very special discussion called <a href="http://wastewise.be/ai1ec_event/working-together-to-solve-the-global-waste-management-challenge/?instance_id=">Working together to Solve the Global Waste Management Challenge</a>. Whether you have been in waste management for some time or had even inkling interest in it, you would have definitely watched Mike Biddle's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RD07GkmM2fc">TED Talk</a>. He, along with Dr. Luis Diaz and Dave McCarthy will be moderated by Jill Boughton, the President and CEO of SWRI. Dr. Luis Diaz authored more 350 publications and numerous books on waste management and was a pioneer of integrated waste management, which is not the standard anywhere in the world. We are also bringing <a href="http://wastewise.be/suggest-a-communicator/">communicators</a> - speakers, writers, cartoonists, photographers, and infographics designers together. We already have 4 cartoonists and three writers. We already brought together organizations with a social media reach of more than 600,000.<br />
<br />
It gives me immense pleasure that they have all agreed to come together to discuss and share knowledge about one of our world's biggest challenge. I thank the technology (<a href="http://www.google.com/+/learnmore/hangouts/">Google+ Hangouts</a>) which made it possible to need only 45 minutes of the time of such busy people to make an impact on this scale. I thank the team which is generously donating their time.<br />
<br />
After we finish our first series of 7 panels, we will have just started, but our efforts will not suffice the enormity of the problem. We are planning to expand the topics and the number of panels rapidly for our forthcoming series.<br />
<br />
Our initiative is infinitely scalable and our plans are implementable, which makes our work even more important. For this reason, which I hope you can all understand and support, I am unable to update this blog. I will post sections of my thesis here and finish the blog soon.<br />
<br />
I thank you all for your wonderful readership. This blog is one of the top resources for waste management in India on Google searches, it is a recommended reading for a sustainability course in University of Minnesota, and has been cited numerous times. Thanks to you. Hope we can be more useful with <a href="http://www.wastewise.be/">Waste Wise</a>.</div>
Ranjith Annepuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10057897153179008657noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-33396883043337007612013-04-10T11:10:00.000-04:002013-04-10T14:34:12.293-04:00Solid Waste Management and its Impacts on Public Health, Pollution and Climate Change<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i>This article is based on Box 2 (page 52) from the report <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">Sustainable Solid Waste Management in India</a>. An earlier post Impacts of Improper Solid Waste Management and the Case of India published this list in the format of a picture.</i><br />
<br />
==========================================<br />
Your suggestions and additions to this list are welcome<br />
==========================================<br />
<br />
Well known and well documented impacts of improper solid waste management are the following -<br />
<br />
(click on "more" for more information)<br />
<br />
1. <b>Pollution</b>- a.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span> Air Pollution, (<a href="http://swmindia.blogspot.com/2012/11/air-pollution-due-to-improper-waste.html">more</a>)<br />
b.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Water Pollution and (<a href="http://swmindia.blogspot.com/2013/03/water-pollution-due-to-improper-waste.html">more</a>)<br />
c.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Soil Pollution and land degradation<br />
<br />
2.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Littered solid waste <b>clogs drains</b>, creating<br />
a.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>stagnant water for insect breeding and<br />
b.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>floods during rainy seasons<br />
<br />
3.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><b>Greenhouse gases</b> are generated from anaerobic decomposition of organic wastes in landfills, which causes<br />
a. Climate Change (<a href="http://www.unep.or.jp/ietc/Publications/spc/Waste&ClimateChange/Waste&ClimateChange.pdf">more</a> <span style="font-size: xx-small;">pdf</span>)<br />
<br />
4.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Insect, rodent and other disease vectors are attracted to the waste and can spread <b>diseases</b> such as<br />
a. Cholera<br />
b. Dengue fever (<a href="http://www.academia.edu/2542304/Observations_from_Indias_Waste_Crisis">more</a>)<br />
c. Malaria (<a href="http://www.academia.edu/2542304/Observations_from_Indias_Waste_Crisis">more</a>)<br />
d. Rabies, etc (<a href="http://www.academia.edu/2542304/Observations_from_Indias_Waste_Crisis">more</a>)<br />
<br />
5.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Some <b>health problems</b> linked directly to exposure to solid wastes are:<br />
a.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Nose & throat infections,<br />
b.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Lung infection,<br />
c.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Breathing problems,<br />
d.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Infection, Inflammation,<br />
e.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Bacterial infections,<br />
f.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Obstruction in airways,<br />
g.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Elevated mucus production,<br />
h.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Covert lung hemorrhage,<br />
i.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Chromosome break,<br />
j.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Anemia,<br />
k.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Cardiovascular risk,<br />
l.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Altered immunity,<br />
m.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Allergy, asthma and<br />
n.<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Other infections.</div>
Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-51305817142378904492013-03-26T23:10:00.000-04:002013-03-26T23:13:54.694-04:00Water Pollution Due to Improper Waste Management<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<em>Real life examples of the impact of waste management on water pollution mentioned in this article are provided in my latest report <a href="http://www.academia.edu/2542304/Observations_from_Indias_Waste_Crisis">Observations from India's Waste Crisis</a> (February, 2013).</em><br />
<em><br /></em>
Unsanitary landfills, which are more commonly referred to as open dumpsites can contaminate ground and surface water resources when the leachate produced percolates through the soil strata into the groundwater underneath or is washed as runoff during rains. Leachate is generally a strong reducing liquid formed under methanogenic (anaerobic) conditions. The characteristics of leachate depend on the content of various constituents in the dumped waste (<a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344910001837">4</a>). <br />
“<a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344910001837">Studies on Environmental Quality in and around Municipal Solid Waste Dumpsite</a>” in Kolkata, by Biswas A.K., et al. found moderately high concentrations of heavy metal in groundwater surround the dumpsite. The study found out that the groundwater quality has been significantly affected by leachate percolation.<br />
Leachate generally contains organic chemicals formed by anaerobic digestion of organic wastes and heavy metals leached from inorganic wastes. <br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4iwXXp_C2tE/Tc2xuUccEHI/AAAAAAAACVQ/ICQgo1McdEA/s1600/IMG_5257.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="273" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4iwXXp_C2tE/Tc2xuUccEHI/AAAAAAAACVQ/ICQgo1McdEA/s640/IMG_5257.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Percolation of leachate in to the ground from a dumpsite like this can effect the quality of ground water used by the nearby community - Pimpri Chinchwad, Maharashtra, India (Ranjith Annepu)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a name='more'></a>The heavy metals generally observed in leachate are Lead (Pb), Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr) and Nickel (Ni). All these heavy metals are characterized as toxic for drinking water. Due to the reducing property of leachate, during percolation through soil strata, it reacts with Iron (Fe) and Manganese (Mn) species underground and reduces them into more soluble species, thus increasing their concentrations in groundwater (4). Such reactions when they occur, pose a serious drinking water toxic risk. These predictions are substantiated by studies which found high concentrations of Cr, Cd and Mn in groundwater due to leachate percolation. Nitrates present in the environment can also be reduced to nitrites due to leachate. Nitrites consumed through drinking water can oxidize haemoglobin (Hb) in the blood to methaemoglobin (met Hb), thereby inhibiting the transportation of oxygen around the body (<a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344910001837">4</a>).<br />
The study clearly establishes that unsanitary landfills in India and elsewhere are potential sources of heavy metals contamination in groundwater sources adjoining the landfills. It also points out that there is an urgent need to adopt credible solutions to control water pollution caused due to indiscriminate dumping of wastes.</div>
Ranjith Annepuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10057897153179008657noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-43760830620448132192013-03-04T16:20:00.001-05:002013-03-04T16:20:12.207-05:00Research Requirements in Solid Waste Management in Transitional Countries<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="line-height: 17px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Rapid urbanization is increasing the pressure on the limited waste and sanitation infrastructure in cities of the developing world. The rate of urbanization in today’s world, driven mainly by these cities is unprecedented and therefore the challenges it presents are much larger in scale and different in scope compared to those experienced in the past by developed countries. To be able to address these challenges, we need new research which can use latest technological tools in understanding changing life styles, public expectations and infrastructural needs, and also to design innovative solutions.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="line-height: 17px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="line-height: 17px;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Research in waste management in transitional countries should mainly focus on facilitating decision making. It should be targeted at national policy makers and at municipality level decision makers.</span></span></div>
</div>
Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-33902085515677935882013-01-14T08:53:00.000-05:002013-03-11T09:47:01.702-04:00Article: Observations from India's Waste Crisis<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
After generous contributions from friends online and offline, I <i>finished editing</i> the report "Observations from India's Crisis". The report is now available in two versions.<br />
<br />
You can find the report here:<br />
<br />
<b>1) On Times of India</b> <a href="http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-02-27/kochi/37330017_1_waste-management-urban-sprawl-new-landfill-sites">here</a> <i>(updated March 9, 2013)</i><br />
<br />
I thanks Mrs. Sudha Nambuduri for providing a chance to disseminate this report to a larger audience by publishing <i><b>an excerpt</b></i> of it in the English Daily with the largest circulation.<br />
<br />
<b>2) On WTERT's Blog</b> <a href="http://wtert.blogspot.com/2013/02/observations-from-indias-waste-crisis.html">here</a> (updated March 9, 2013)<br />
<br />
Thanks to Professor Nickolas Themelis and the Global WTERT Council for allowing me to publish the report in the form of a blog post, which will make it more easily searchable on google.<br />
<br />
<b>3) On Clean India Journal </b><a href="http://www.cleanindiajournal.com/indian_crisis_scenario_a_report/">here</a> (<i>updated Jan 24, 2013</i>)<br />
<br />
I thank the Managing Editor Mohana for the interest in the issues covered in the report and for offering to publish it in their latest venture Waste Recycling India magazine too.<br />
<br />
<b>4) On Paneuro - Energy & Environment Magazine</b> <a href="http://www.paneuro.net/document/index.html">here</a><br />
Username: paneuro<br />
Password: z713xdr<br />
Page: 65<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I thank the Magazine Editor Paul Patane for featuring my article alongside articles by Danish Minister for Climate, European Commissioners for Climate Control, Energy and Environment, and other brilliant minds.</div>
<br />
<b>5) On D-Waste's website</b> <a href="http://www.d-waste.com/new-infographics/item/135-observations-from-india-s-crisis.html">here</a><br />
<br />
I thank D-Waste's CEO Antonis Mavropoulos and Maria Tsakona for being the first people to recognize the potential of the report.<br />
<br />
<b>6) At BioEnergy Consult's website,</b> published as three articles <a href="http://www.bioenergyconsult.com/author/ranjith/">here</a><br />
<br />
I thank Salman Zafar and Arafat Aden for their encouragement.<br />
<br />
<i>The full list of Acknowledgements and Bibliography of the report will be published on <a href="http://www.wtert.org/">www.wtert.org</a></i><br />
<br />
Thank you all again for your interest and time.<br />
Ranjith Annepu</div>
Ranjith Annepuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10057897153179008657noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-18726782782393372312012-12-05T19:38:00.002-05:002012-12-05T19:38:48.195-05:00Discussion on Waste Management Options in India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
A request for help I posted on a LinkedIn group led to a lively discussion between waste management experts on waste management options for India. Read more about the <a href="http://wtert.blogspot.com/2012/12/discussion-on-solutions-to-waste.html">discussion here. http://wtert.blogspot.com/2012/12/discussion-on-solutions-to-waste.html</a> .<br />
<br />
The request for help was for a new report I am about to publish, called "Observations from India's Crisis". It will be published in a PDF format on <a href="http://wtert.org/">wtert.org</a> and as a BLOG POST on <a href="http://blog.wtert.org/">blog.wtert.org</a>.<br />
<br />
<u>An Analogy from the above discussion on LinkedIn, which is worth mentioning:</u><br />
<br />
<b>Professor Nickolas Themelis</b> on Waste Management Options (He was the Adviser for my research on <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">Sustainable Solid Waste Management in India</a> that resulted in this blog) :<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The situation with waste management is somewhat like that with public health: Good diet and exercise, vitamins, preventive medicine, all contribute to better health and less sickness. Despite all that, there will be some sick people who need to go to hospitals. It is obvious that advocating against hospitals or opposing new ones will not improve public health. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
It is the same situation with urban waste management: There all kinds of means for reduction, recycling, composting but ALL human experience has shown that at the end there remains a substantial fraction that has to go to either "incinerators with energy recovery or to sanitary landfills. Environmental organizations who oppose these two means on principle, in effect are perpetuating traditional landfilling. Regrettably, the <a href="http://www.sierraclub.org/">Sierra Club</a> is spending a lot of donated money doing just that.</blockquote>
Link to the entire discussion is <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/groupItem?view=&gid=4470826&item=188409296&type=member&commentID=107563519&trk=hb_ntf_COMMENTED_ON_GROUP_DISCUSSION_YOU_CREATED#commentID_107563519">here</a>.<br />
Link to the original article is <a href="http://wtert.blogspot.com/2012/12/discussion-on-solutions-to-waste.html">here</a>.<br />
</div>
Ranjith Annepuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10057897153179008657noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-35575835037230246192012-11-25T22:04:00.000-05:002012-11-25T23:16:59.850-05:00Integrated Solid Waste Management - Definition<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Definition of Integrated Solid Waste Management</b><br />
<br />
Integrated waste management is the coordinated use of a strategically chosen set of waste management options each of which play specific roles in prevention and reduction of waste and its transportation, and in material and energy recovery from wastes towards achieving maximum resource efficiency.<br />
<br />
This definition is a result of combining two earlier definitions from<br />
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li>Coordinated use of a set of waste management methods, each of which can play a role in an overall Municipal Solid Waste Management plan. (<a href="http://www.gdrc.org/uem/waste/swm-glossary.html">The Global Development Research Center - GDRC</a>)</li>
<li>Integrated solid waste management refers to the strategic approach to sustainable management of solid wastes covering all sources and all aspects, covering generation, segregation, transfer, sorting, treatment, recovery and disposal in an integrated manner, with an emphasis on maximizing resource use efficiency. (<a href="http://www.un.org/esa/dsd/csd/csd_pdfs/csd-19/learningcentre/presentations/May%202%20am/1%20-%20Memon%20-%20ISWM.pdf">Mushtaq Ahmed Memon - International Environmental Technology Centre - IETC, United Nations Environment Programme - UNEP</a>)</li>
</ol>
<div>
<span style="background-color: #999999; color: #999999;">Future reference: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/definition</span></div>
</div>
Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-4525127391783002582012-11-23T19:39:00.000-05:002012-12-06T16:27:02.311-05:00Air Pollution due to Improper Waste Management - Open Burning and Landfill Fires<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Contents</b><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><br /></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>1. </b><b>Emissions of </b><b>Particulate Matter, Hydrocarbons, and Carbon Monoxide </b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>2. Carcinogenic Dioxins/Furans Emissions</b><br />
<b><br /></b></div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
1. Emissions of Particulate Matter, Hydrocarbons, and Carbon Monoxide </h3>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A 2010 study by the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, “Air Quality Assessment, Emissions
Inventory and Source Apportionment Studies: Mumbai” found out that open burning
and landfill fires are a major source of air pollution in Mumbai. The study
found that about 2% of the total MSW (Municipal Solid Waste) generated in Mumbai is openly burnt on the
streets and 10% of the total MSW generated is burnt in landfills by humans or
due to landfill fires.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In Mumbai, open burning of MSW is (Appendix 4<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%'><span
style='mso-element:field-begin'></span><span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>REF _Ref307420300 \h <span style='mso-element:
field-separator'></span></span><![endif]--><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Figure 16</span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%'><span style='mso-element:
field-begin'></span><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>REF _Ref307420270 \h
<span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span></span><![endif]-->Figure 17<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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</xml><![endif]--></span><!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:
12.0pt;line-height:115%'><span style='mso-element:field-end'></span></span><![endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">, </span><!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%'><span style='mso-element:
field-begin'></span><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>REF _Ref307420282 \h
<span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span></span><![endif]-->Figure 18<span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:data>08D0C9EA79F9BACE118C8200AA004BA90B02000000080000000E0000005F005200650066003300300037003400320030003200380032000000</w:data>
</xml><![endif]--></span><!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:
12.0pt;line-height:115%'><span style='mso-element:field-end'></span></span><![endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">, </span><!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%'><span style='mso-element:
field-begin'></span><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>REF _Ref307420314 \h
<span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span></span><![endif]--><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Figure 19</span><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:data>08D0C9EA79F9BACE118C8200AA004BA90B02000000080000000E0000005F005200650066003300300037003400320030003300310034000000</w:data>
</xml><![endif]--></span><!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:
12.0pt;line-height:115%'><span style='mso-element:field-end'></span></span><![endif]-->)
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .25in .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">1.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">the largest emitter of carbon monoxide (CO), particulate
matter (PM), carcinogenic hydrocarbons (HC) and nitrous oxides (NO<sub>x</sub>),
among activities that do not add to the economy of the city;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .25in .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">2.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">the second largest emitter of hydrocarbons (HC);<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .25in .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">3.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">the second largest emitter of particulate matter (PM); <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .25in .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">4.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">the fourth largest emitter of carbon monoxide compared to all
emissions sources in Mumbai; and <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .25in .5in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">5.<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">the third largest emitter of CO, PM and HC combined together
in comparison to all emission sources in the city. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qk2JnGroZcA/ULAVAy1l9QI/AAAAAAAADvw/rSs3C0NFWik/s1600/Comparison+of+Carbon+Monoxide,+Hydrocarbons,+and+Particulate+Matter+Emissions+from+all+Combustion+Sources+in+Mumbai.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="313" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qk2JnGroZcA/ULAVAy1l9QI/AAAAAAAADvw/rSs3C0NFWik/s320/Comparison+of+Carbon+Monoxide,+Hydrocarbons,+and+Particulate+Matter+Emissions+from+all+Combustion+Sources+in+Mumbai.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="center" class="MsoCaption">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Toc313777824"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Ref307420314"><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.0pt;">Figure </span></a><!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420314'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777824'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-begin'></span><span style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420314'><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777824'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:
8.0pt;line-height:115%'><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>SEQ Figure \*
ARABIC <span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span></span></span></span><![endif]--><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.0pt;">19</span><!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420314'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777824'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-end'></span><![endif]--><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.0pt;">, Open burning contributes to 19% of Mumbai’s Air
Pollution due to Carbon Monoxide, Hydrocarbons and Particulate Matter</span><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-no-proof: yes;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Fb_GkV2D3fg/ULAVAOBzt_I/AAAAAAAADvo/CMmPBhwto6E/s1600/Comparison+of+Carbon+Monoxide+Emissions+from+all+Combustion+Sources+in+Mumbai.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="295" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Fb_GkV2D3fg/ULAVAOBzt_I/AAAAAAAADvo/CMmPBhwto6E/s320/Comparison+of+Carbon+Monoxide+Emissions+from+all+Combustion+Sources+in+Mumbai.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="center" class="MsoCaption">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Toc313777821"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Ref307420300"><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.0pt;">Figure </span></a><!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420300'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777821'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-begin'></span><span style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420300'><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777821'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:
8.0pt;line-height:115%'><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>SEQ Figure \*
ARABIC <span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span></span></span></span><![endif]--><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.0pt;">16</span><!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420300'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777821'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-end'></span><![endif]--><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.0pt;">, Open burning is a Major Contributor to Carbon
Monoxide Pollution in Mumbai</span><span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<a name='more'></a><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hRfi1pvwFfg/ULAVBdTyaOI/AAAAAAAADv4/cQc6HNBvPw8/s1600/Comparison+of+Hydrocarbon+Emissions+from+all+Combustion+Sources+in+Mumbai.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="305" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hRfi1pvwFfg/ULAVBdTyaOI/AAAAAAAADv4/cQc6HNBvPw8/s320/Comparison+of+Hydrocarbon+Emissions+from+all+Combustion+Sources+in+Mumbai.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="center" class="MsoCaption">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Toc313777822"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Ref307420270">Figure </a><!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-bookmark:
_Ref307420270'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777822'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-begin'></span><span style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420270'><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777822'><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>SEQ
Figure \* ARABIC <span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span></span></span><![endif]-->17<!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420270'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777822'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-end'></span><![endif]-->, Open burning is the second largest
contributor of Hydrocarbons in Mumbai’s atmosphere<span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HN0mBh2GaT8/ULAVB7RcLTI/AAAAAAAADwA/WCfE9gVROm8/s1600/Comparison+of+Particulate+Emissions+from+all+Combustion+Sources+in+Mumbai.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="291" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HN0mBh2GaT8/ULAVB7RcLTI/AAAAAAAADwA/WCfE9gVROm8/s320/Comparison+of+Particulate+Emissions+from+all+Combustion+Sources+in+Mumbai.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="center" class="MsoCaption">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Toc313777823"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Ref307420282">Figure </a><!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-bookmark:
_Ref307420282'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777823'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-begin'></span><span style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420282'><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777823'><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>SEQ
Figure \* ARABIC <span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span></span></span><![endif]-->18<!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307420282'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777823'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-end'></span><![endif]-->, Open burning of MSW is the Second Largest
Source of Particulate Matter Emissions in Mumbai, greater than Road
Transportation<span style="text-align: left;"> </span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IJbWhzyNNHs/ULAU_pBjK0I/AAAAAAAADvg/jQeiqhgdCoY/s1600/All+Emissions+from+Open+Burning+and+Landfill+Fires+in+Mumbai,+Tons+per+year.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IJbWhzyNNHs/ULAU_pBjK0I/AAAAAAAADvg/jQeiqhgdCoY/s320/All+Emissions+from+Open+Burning+and+Landfill+Fires+in+Mumbai,+Tons+per+year.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="center" class="MsoCaption">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Toc313777820"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Ref307418969"><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.0pt;">Figure </span></a><!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307418969'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777820'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-begin'></span><span style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307418969'><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777820'><span style='font-size:10.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:
8.0pt;line-height:115%'><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>SEQ Figure \*
ARABIC <span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span></span></span></span><![endif]--><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.0pt;">15</span><!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-bookmark:_Ref307418969'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Toc313777820'></span></span><span
style='mso-element:field-end'></span><![endif]--><span style="font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 8.0pt;">, Open Burning of MSW Releases 22,000 tons per year of
CO, HCs, PM, NOx, and SO2 into Mumbai’s Lower Atmosphere</span><span style="background: yellow; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-highlight: yellow;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Open burning contributes to 19% of air pollution due to CO,
PM and HC in Mumbai (<span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Figure 19</span>).
More than twice as much particulate matter is emitted by open burning of MSW as
compared to emissions from road transportation in Mumbai. Also, a quarter of
volatile hydrocarbons entering the atmosphere in Mumbai are a result of such
activity.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
MSW is combusted on the streets, exposing millions of urban
Indians directly to these emissions every day. MSW burning in the landfill
happens in areas with lesser population but the activity emits pollutants into
the lower atmosphere, where the dispersion of pollutants is very low, increasing
the risk of exposure to these harmful emissions.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<iframe frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AjEc3FQ6km_LdHd6cDlZU01EMldOb3F5cG1NdGpGU1E&output=html&widget=true" width="510"></iframe>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The study identifies that open burning of MSW on streets and
landfill sites need to be stopped immediately to increase air quality in Mumbai
and points out the need for credible solutions to this problem. The study has
calculated that 50% reduction in open burning and a 100% reduction in landfill
fires are required to reduce PM pollution in Mumbai by 98%, along with many
other initiatives.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="id.3ae7cf298bc9"></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
2. <b>Carcinogenic Dioxins/Furans Emissions</b></h3>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Open burning of MSW and landfill fires emit 10,000 grams of
dioxins/furans into Mumbai’s lower atmosphere every year <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550916"><!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-element:field-begin'></span><span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>CITATION Nat10 \l 1033 <span
style='mso-element:field-separator'></span><![endif]-->(5)<!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-element:field-end'></span><![endif]--></w:sdt>
<w:sdt citation="t" id="50550917"><!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-element:field-begin'></span><span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'> </span>CITATION Nip08 \l 1033 <span
style='mso-element:field-separator'></span><![endif]-->(28)<!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-element:field-end'></span><![endif]--></w:sdt>
(<!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-element:field-begin'></span> REF
_Ref312528301 \h <span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span><![endif]-->Appendix
14<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:data>08D0C9EA79F9BACE118C8200AA004BA90B02000000080000000E0000005F005200650066003300310032003500320038003300300031000000</w:data>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-element:field-end'></span><![endif]-->).
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Dioxins and Furans are known carcinogenic agents; they can
cause cancer in case of long term exposure. The risk of exposure to
dioxins/furans is considerably increased due to the fact that MSW is burnt on
the streets and landfills which are at ground level, releasing them into
directly into ambient surroundings. Also, open burning is a frequent occurrence
in some communities, and Landfill fires, once started, go on for weeks at a
stretch, increasing human exposure further. During health studies conducted in
Kolkata, waste pickers who are regularly exposed to landfill fire emissions for
longer periods were found to have a “Chromosome Break” incidence which was 12
times higher than the control population. Chromosome Break often leads to
cancer. Municipality workers were also found to have higher incidence of
Chromosome Break compared to control population, but less than that of waste
pickers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Health and environmental impacts of open burning are less
known to the public and environmental organizations also often ignore open
burning as a source of dioxins/furans emissions.</div>
<br />
<br /></div>
</div>
Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-73298540628625979112012-11-01T21:10:00.001-04:002013-04-25T17:36:54.197-04:00Status of Current Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Handling Techniques in India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This post is Section 3 from this blog's source and Columbia University's report <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">Sustainable Solid Waste Management in India</a>.<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
Contents:</h3>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
1. Summary<br />2. Aerobic Composting or Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) Facilities<br />3. Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) facilities<br />4. Waste-to-energy combustion (WTE) facilities<br />5. Sanitary Landfills (SLFs)</h4>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<iframe frameborder="0" height="300" src="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AjEc3FQ6km_LdHR3VUd4OGcxQl9TdFBiR0xENnVxOVE&single=true&gid=0&output=html&widget=true" width="600"></iframe>
<br />
1. Summary</h3>
Out of the 57 cities surveyed, all of them continue uncontrolled dumping to a large extent. However, twenty one (21) cities have reported applying earth cover (how frequently is unknown) to the wastes in the landfills and 24 cities reported compaction and alignment of wastes as opposed to uncontrolled dumping! </div>
<br />
Thirty eight (38) cities have mechanical biological treatment facilities treating more than 4,300 tons per day (TPD) of mixed solid waste, 6 cities have refuse derived fuel (RDF) or Waste-to-Energy (WTE) facilities treating about 1,600 tons per day (TPD) of mixed waste. Small scale biomethanation is practiced in more than 9 cities, but these efforts are generally scattered. They are successful near markets, slaughter houses and other such large sources of separated organic wastes.<br />
<br />
Eight (8) cities have constructed sanitary landfills (SLFs). It is important to note that five (5) of them generating less than 1,000 TPD of municipal solid waste (MSW), and three of them generating about 2,000 TPD of MSW. Sanitary landfills (SLFs) in larger cities has proven unsuccessful and cities generating less than 500 TPD do not have enough resources to build and maintain SLFs. A regional facility model suggested by MOUD should be followed to make a SLF a reality when it comes to those cities.<br />
<br />
Three (3) cities: Mumbai, Pune and Agra are known to be carrying out landfill gas (LFG) recovery, even though Mumbai's landfill where the LFG recovery operation is taking place was an open dump and not a sanitary landfill as it is in Pune and Agra.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
This report has updated the “Status of Cities and state capitals in implementation of MSW (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000”, jointly published by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), with respect to waste disposal options. The original table was published by Sunil Kumar, et al. in the paper “Assessment of the Status of Municipal Solid Waste Management in Metro Cities, State Capitals, Class I Cities and Class II Towns in India: An Insight” (1). This updated table contains only those cities which generate MSW greater than 200 TPD and have taken significant steps towards proper SWM.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Informal recycling has not been included in this table. Most of the recyclable waste is collected by the informal recycling sector in India before it is collected by the formal system. It is assumed that informal waste picking happens in all Indian cities to some extent (Kochi is an exception due to labor laws which prohibit waste picking). Also, the exact percentage of recycling in each of these cities is unknown. However, it is estimated that the informal sector recycles as much as 56% of recyclables generated in large cities and metros, (See Section 5.1.1). The recycling percentage is lower in smaller cities as was observed by Perinaz Bhada, et al (15).</div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
2. Aerobic Composting or Mechanical Biological Treatment (MBT) Facilties</h3>
<div style="text-align: left;">
On an average, 6% of MSW collected is composted in mechanical biological treatment (MBT) plants across India. MBT is the most widely employed technology to handle MSW in India. Currently, there are more than 70 composting plants in India treating mixed MSW, most of them located in the states of Maharashtra (19), Himachal Pradesh (11), Chhattisgarh (9) and Orissa (7) (Appendix 8). More than 26 new plants are proposed in different cities and towns across India. The first 10 MBT plants built in India are however not in operation anymore.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Out of the 57 cities which generate MSW above 200 TPD, 38 cities have composting plants, which treat more than 4,361 TPD of MSW. Table 9 is therefore the first such effort which accounts for about 40% of the current MSW composting capacity in India.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Almost all composting/MBT facilities handle mixed wastes. The only known plants which handle source separated organic wastes are in Vijayawada and Suryapet (26). Since almost all these plants handle mixed solid wastes, the percentage of rejects which go to the landfill is very high. During the author’s research visit in India, it was observed that only 6-7% of the input MSW is converted into compost. Accounting for moisture and material losses, the remaining 60% which cannot be composted any further is landfilled despite its high energy content (See Section 5.2.4)</div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
3. Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) Facilties</h3>
<div style="text-align: left;">
There are 6 RDF plants in India, near Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Mumbai and Rajkot. The plant in Vijayawada used to serve the city of Guntur too. The Hyderabad and Vijayawada plants handled 700 TPD and 500 TPD of MSW to generate 6 MW of electricity respectively. RDF produced in these plants was combusted in specifically designed WTE boilers. The author visited one of these plants and found out that both these facilities are currently not in operation.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The RDF plants near Jaipur and Chandigarh combust the RDF produced in cement kilns to replace fossil fuels. They handle 500 TPD of MSW each. The author visited the plant in Jaipur and found that it is not operated regularly. The plant in Chandigarh is known to have been dormant too, but it is being retrofitted with MSW drying systems to reduce moisture in the final RDF.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The RDF plant in Rajkot handles 300 TPD of waste. Other than this information, there is not much known about this plant; its present operational status is unknown too. It is the same case with the small scale RDF plant in Mumbai, which produces RDF pellets by processing 80 TPD of MSW (See Section 5.4).</div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
4. Waste-to-Energy Combustion (WTE) Facilities</h3>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<u>(This section was updated after the publication of the source report </u><a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">Sustainable Solid Waste Management in India</a><u>)</u> </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Only two WTE plants were built in India until now, both in Delhi. Only one of them is currently in operation at Okhla landfill site, New Delhi and has started operations in December, 2011. An earlier WTE plant, which was built in Timarpur, New Delhi is not in operation anymore. The two WTE plants in Hyderabad and Vijayawada are not mass burn combustion. They combust RDF produced after considerable processing of MSW, and addition of secondary biomass fuels like rice husk. Therefore they are RDF-WTE plants.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Even though the Okhla Timarpur plant was built to be a mass burn combustion plant, it is known that they undertake primary processing of the waste to increase its suitability to the boilers.</div>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
5. Sanitary Landfills (SLFs)</h3>
<div style="text-align: left;">
On comparing Table 9 with the original publication (Comparison in Appendix 3), it was observed that the number of SLFs is gradually increasing. Eight cities now have SLFs as compared to zero SLFs out of 74 cities studied. The eight cities with SLFs are Pune, Ahmadabad, Surat, Jodhpur, Chandigarh, Navi Mumbai, Mangalore and Nashik. The author visited the landfill facility at Nashik and observed that there were no precautions taken to handle landfill fires, which were found to be common at the facility (See Section 4.2). In addition to the 8 cities with SLFs, an additional 13 (total 21) cities apply earth cover over the wastes dumped and an additional 15 cities (total 24) compact or align the wastes. The frequency of applying earth cover on wastes is not known.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
LFG recovery from landfills has also been attempted at landfills in Mumbai and Pune. A study by USEPA’s Methane to Markets program found methane recovery from only 7 landfills (in 4 cities) to be economically feasible (Table below).</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
UNEP recommends “[sanitary landfilling] is well suited to developing countries (like India) as a means of managing the disposal of wastes because of the flexibility and relative simplicity of the technology”. This recommendation does not take into consideration the high maintaining and operating costs of SLFs and the need for SWM projects to sustain themselves. Most sanitary landfills built in developing nations eventually fail due to high operating costs. A system where majority of the waste generated is planned to reach the landfill will lack robust cost recovery mechanisms. In such a case, the only cost recovery mechanism possible would be tipping fees, which will require increasing or levying user charges/taxes, which many ULBs cannot implement. Sanitary landfilling systems should be designed as an addition to recycling, composting or WTE facilities, which sustain themselves financially.</div>
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="300" src="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AjEc3FQ6km_LdEEzNmE1M0Q2QTRUNXAyN3FoTVFaOVE&output=html&widget=true" width="650"></iframe>
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Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-67045777906855730272012-10-16T20:08:00.002-04:002013-01-22T14:21:08.411-05:00Advice to Thiruvananthapuram might not help alleviate the city's looming solid waste crisis<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<strong><u>The original post is on <a href="http://blog.wtert.org/">blog.wtert.org</a></u></strong><br />
<br />
This is a response to an article published by FirstPost.com with the title "<a href="http://www.firstpost.com/india/thiruvananthapuram-sinks-in-its-own-waste-as-rulers-look-for-shortcuts-492520.html">Thiruvananthapuram sinks in its own waste as rulers look for shortcuts</a>" on October 16, 2012.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tDlSTl58l5Q/UH3y8hYAlaI/AAAAAAAAEMM/w0y_G_C1FHo/s1600/Thiruvananthapuram+-+public+protests+-+Hindu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="123" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tDlSTl58l5Q/UH3y8hYAlaI/AAAAAAAAEMM/w0y_G_C1FHo/s200/Thiruvananthapuram+-+public+protests+-+Hindu.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Public protests - The Hindu</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<em><span style="color: #999999;">This critique is not about the conceptual or factual validity of the article but it is to distinguish between the short-term and long-term priorities and solutions for the city. In the absence of such a distinction, various stakeholders with the same goal of solving the crisis and with correct models will end up debating ideals and fighting within each other, finally doing no good to the city.</span></em><br />
<br />
While depicting the situation as: <br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
When the residents of Vilappilsaala said "no more garbage" to their neighbourhood, the corporation, which is used to an archaic collect-transport-dump routine, didn’t know what to do. They just stopped garbage collection and it started piling up everywhere. <strong>The city is putrid today</strong>. </blockquote>
FirstPost suggests a 4-step approach (edited for brevity)<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
1. Ask the city residents to mandatorily separate waste at source. Once recyclables and organic matter are removed, only about 20 per cent needs to be dumped in a sanitary landfill. </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
2. Once the source-segregation is made mandatory, the city corporation can collect both the recyclables door-to-door (women-run self help groups have been doing this). Engage scrap dealers to whom the materials can be sold.<br />
<br />
3. The bio-degradable materials can be collected door-to-door and used in compost facilities at several locations in the city.<br />
<br />
4. The remaining 20% of waste need to be disposed off in landfills.</blockquote>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GxcTp3ssvZ0/UH3y-nFu62I/AAAAAAAAEMc/u02AsI__vsY/s1600/Thiruvananthapuram+-+waste+burning.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="147" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GxcTp3ssvZ0/UH3y-nFu62I/AAAAAAAAEMc/u02AsI__vsY/s200/Thiruvananthapuram+-+waste+burning.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thiruvananthapuram - Deccan Chronicle</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The 4-step advise can be followed if the City can get over the current crisis. For whatever reason, if it fails to do so, the crisis will continue like in Campania, Italy. In that case, Firstpost's advise will provide some relief but not real solutions. Therefore, it is irrelevant to the article's subject line. Let me explain how:<br />
The subject line and the article speak about the imminent solid waste crisis in Thiruvananthapuram, but the solution suggested is not a process but a future state that should be achieved. To achieve such a state, the suggested components should evolve together with gradually increasing infrastructure, changing social habits and the city's institutional and financial abilities. Such a change cannot be brought in with sudden interventions in a short span of time.<br />
<em></em><br />
<a name='more'></a><em><span style="color: #3d85c6;">This critique is not about the conceptual or factual validity of the article but it is to distinguish between the short-term and long-term priorities and solutions for the city. In the absence of such a distinction, various stakeholders with the same goal of solving the crisis and with correct models will end up debating ideals and fighting within each other, finally doing no good to the city.</span></em><br />
<br />
When public is unable to find space to throw away their everyday waste (since it is not being collected), when public health is deteriorating, and the public is agitated about it, city-wide source segregation is the last thing that can be achieved. Even if source separation is practiced, there is no city-wide system in place to collect source separated waste. It has to be mixed again to be transported. There are no decentralized composting plants in the city either! They can neither be built in a day nor can they make the waste disappear!<br />
<br />
The first priority of any solid waste management activity should be public health protection. Collection of waste is the responsibility of the urban local body (ULB). So, collect all the waste first using the formal workforce and the informal workforce (waste pickers) and transport it (as far as possible) to an operating landfill (Kerala does not have much space for landfills! they do not many options either!). Before transporting, let the informal sector take as many recyclables out of the waste as they can. <br />
<br />
Now that there is a temporary arrangement in place [for months], go to the public and ask them to segregate the waste to make the ULB's duty of protecting their health, easier.<br />
<br />
The second priority of any solid waste activity is environmental protection and conservation. While making temporary arrangements to transport waste to far away landfills, coordinate with surrounding ULBs to build a regional sanitary landfill facility [within a year]. <br />
<br />
Once you have accomplished that, go look for waste-to-energy technologies (you cannot manage waste in Kerala without these). If you cannot finance them, go for composting. Even though composting is more sustainable than waste-to-energy, it becomes a second option due to market and operational factors.<br />
<br />
It is necessary that stakeholder distinguish between short and long term priorities. Confusion or lack of distinction will lead to opposition which will decrease the efficiency of the processes that need to be initiated to achieve the goals of sustainable solid waste management to improve public health, quality of life and the environment.<br />
<br />
Apart from these, there are many factual corrections required in this article. Eg: Composition of waste, "easily find market for compost", "every recyclable has a market", etc.</div>
Ranjith Annepuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10057897153179008657noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-70441430615170946062012-10-03T16:05:00.002-04:002012-11-23T16:46:09.317-05:00Impacts of Improper Solid Waste Management and the Case of India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This post is an edited/updated version of Section 4 from <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">Sustainable Solid Waste Management in India</a></span><br />
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Contents</span></h4>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1. Impacts of Improper Waste Management</span></h4>
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2. The Case of India</span></h4>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1. Impacts of Improper Waste Management</span></h3>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Improper solid waste management deteriorates public health, degrades quality of life, and pollutes local air, water and land resources. It also causes global warming and climate change and impacts the entire planet. Improper waste management is also identified as a cause of 22 human diseases and results in numerous premature deaths every year. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aSsoLNedC8U/UGyecz1QNCI/AAAAAAAAELc/8z0zDfF5l5Q/s1600/IMG_20121003_161956.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aSsoLNedC8U/UGyecz1QNCI/AAAAAAAAELc/8z0zDfF5l5Q/s640/IMG_20121003_161956.jpg" width="329" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Indiscriminate dumping of wastes and leachate from landfills contaminates surface and groundwater supplies and the surrounding land resources. It also clogs sewers and drains and leads to floods. Mumbai experienced a flood in 2006 which was partly due to clogged sewers. Insect and rodent vectors are attracted to MSW and can spread diseases such as cholera, dengue fever and plague. Using water polluted by solid waste for bathing, food irrigation, and as drinking water can also expose individuals to disease organisms and other contaminants . </span><br />
<br />
Surat City experienced a Bubonic Plague epidemic in 1994 due to improper SWM. Improper SWM is also a reason for the recent (August - September, 2012) Dengue epidemic in Kolkata, which affected thousands and killed 25 people (as of September 12, 2012). Improper waste management was also the reason for the large scale public protests in Vilappilsala (near Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala) and Mavallipura (in Bengaluru, Karnataka). These protests were the result of long term health effects experienced by residents living around overflowing landfills.<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Open burning of MSW on streets and at landfills, along with landfill fires emit 22,000 tons of pollutants into the lower atmosphere of Mumbai city, every year. The pollutants identified in Mumbai due to uncontrolled burning of wastes are carbon monoxide (CO), carcinogenic hydro carbons (HC) (includes dioxins and furans), particulate matter (PM), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) . (<i>Keep looking out for the next post for more figures and some charts on air pollution due to waste management</i>).</span><br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aSsoLNedC8U/UGyecz1QNCI/AAAAAAAAELc/8z0zDfF5l5Q/s1600/IMG_20121003_161956.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><br /></a>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">MSW dumped in landfills also generates green house gases like...</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> methane, which has 21 times more global warming potential than carbon dioxide. Improper SWM contributes to 6% of India’s methane emissions and is the third largest emitter of methane in India. This is much higher than the global average of 3% methane emissions from solid waste. It currently produces 16 million tons of CO2 equivalents per year and this number is expected to rise to 20 million tons of CO2 equivalents by 2020. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The world is moving towards calling wastes as “resources”. Due to the inability to manage these resources in the next decade, India will landfill 6.7 million tons of recyclables (or secondary raw materials); 9.6 million tons of compost (or organic fertilizer); and resources equivalent to 57.2 million barrels of oil.</span><br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The Case of India</span></h3>
ULBs spend about $10 – 30 (INR 500 – 1,500) per ton on SWM. About 60-70% of this amount is spent on collection, 20-30% on transportation. No financial resources are allotted for scientific disposal of waste. Despite the fairly high expenditure, the present level of service in many urban areas is so low as to be a potential threat to the public health and environmental quality.<br />
<br />
A guidance note titled “ Municipal Solid Waste Management on a Regional Basis”, by the Ministry of Urban Development (MOUD), Government of India (GOI) observes that “Compliance with the MSW Rules 2000 requires that appropriate systems and infrastructure facilities be put in place to undertake scientific collection, management, processing and disposal of MSW. However, authorities are unable to implement and sustain separate and independent projects to enable scientific collection, management, processing and disposal of MSW. This is mainly due to lack of financial and technical expertise and scarcity of resources, such as land and manpower.”<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Efforts towards proper SWM were made by urban local bodies (ULBs) equipped with financial and managerial capacity to improve waste management practices in response to MSW Rules 2000. Despite these efforts to manage wastes, more than 91% of MSW collected is still landfilled or dumped on open lands and dumps , impacting public health, deteriorating quality of life and causing environmental pollution. It is estimated that about 2% of the uncollected wastes are burnt openly on the streets; and about 10% of the collected MSW is openly burnt in landfills or is caught in landfill fires (See Section 4.2). The MSW collection efficiency in major metro cities still ranges between 70 - 90% of waste generated, whereas smaller cities and towns collect less than 50% of waste generated.</span></div>
Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-57732069411231736122012-10-03T11:55:00.002-04:002012-10-03T11:55:36.666-04:00Upload your photos showcasing improper waste management in India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-2186287316769446692012-07-07T03:57:00.000-04:002012-07-07T04:10:24.375-04:00Population and Municipal Solid Waste Generation in India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h4 style="text-align: left;">
<b>Contents</b></h4>
<span style="background-color: white;">1. Population</span><br />
2. Population Growth<br />
3. Impact of Population Growth on Municipal Solid Waste Generation<br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white;">1. Population</span></h3>
India is the second most populous nation on the planet. The Census of 2011 estimates a population of 1.21 billion which is 17.66% of the world population. It is as much as the combined population of USA, Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Japan. The population of Uttar Pradesh, one among 28 Indian states is greater than that of Brazil, the fifth most populous nation in the world. India’s urban population was 285 million in 2001 and increased to 377 million in 2011. Indian urban population is greater than the total population of USA (308.7 million), the third most populous nation.<br />
<span style="background-color: white;">Appendix 1 (<a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">in the report here</a>) lists 366 cities which represent 70% of India’s urban population and generate 130,000 tons per day (TPD) or 47.2 million tons per year (TPY) at a per capita waste generation rate of 500 grams/day. This implies the total MSW generated by urban India could be as much as 188,500 TPD or 68.8 million TPY. This number matches the projection (65 million TPY in 2010) by Sunil Kumar, et al. (<a href="http://cdm.unfccc.int/filestorage/J/C/H/JCHVZ7BDLU1QE30F9G6POANRYMTW2X/Enclosure%203.pdf?t=QjR8bTZzNXNsfDBx_i6cpjpi3rXrF9Rjr0JJ">17</a>). Therefore, this report assumes that the quantum of waste generated by urban India to be 68.8 million TPY. The general consensus on amount of waste generated by urban India is 50 million TPY, which is very low in comparison to the current findings.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ijAEk1JN0I4/T_fnqBT1KeI/AAAAAAAADTk/fHe0VjFvP70/s1600/8+Total+Population+and+Urban+Population+Growth+in+India.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="218" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ijAEk1JN0I4/T_fnqBT1KeI/AAAAAAAADTk/fHe0VjFvP70/s400/8+Total+Population+and+Urban+Population+Growth+in+India.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Figure 8. Total Population and Urban Population Growth in India</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: white;">The six metro cities, Kolkata, Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru together generate 48,000 TPD (17.5 million TPY) of MSW. Currently, India has 53 cities with populations greater than one million, generating 86,245 TPD (31.5 million TPY), which is about 46 % of the total MSW generated in urban India. The remaining 313 cities studied generate 15.7 million TPY (43,000 TPD), 23% of the total urban MSW, only half of that generated by the 53 cities with million plus population.</span><br />
<a name='more'></a><h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></h3>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white;">2. Population Growth</span></h3>
<div>
Indian population increased by more than 181 million during 2001 – 2011, a 17.64% increase in population, since 2001. Even though this was the sharpest decline in population growth rate registered post-Independence the absolute addition during 2001-2011 is almost as much as the population of Brazil, the fifth most populous country in the world.<br />
<span style="background-color: white;">It is clear that the scale of populations dealt with in case of India and China are entirely different from any other country in the world. Indian urban population increased by 31.8 % during 2001 – 2011, which implies an annual growth rate of 2.8% during this period.</span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KYdtfdI7oD8/T_fn5y7eAzI/AAAAAAAADTs/hmH_pEO87Ho/s1600/Figure+9+Trend+of+Urbanization+in+India.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KYdtfdI7oD8/T_fn5y7eAzI/AAAAAAAADTs/hmH_pEO87Ho/s400/Figure+9+Trend+of+Urbanization+in+India.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Figure 9. The urbanization trend in India</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
</h3>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
3. Impact of Population Growth on Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Generation</h3>
Population growth and rapid urbanization means bigger and denser cities and increased MSW generation in each city. The data compiled for this report indicates that 366 cities in India were generating 31.6 million tons of waste in 2001 and are currently generating 47.3 million tons, a 50% increase in one decade. It is estimated that these 366 cities will generate 161 million tons of MSW in 2041, a five-fold increase in four decades. At this rate the total urban MSW generated in 2041 would be 230 million TPY (630,000 TPD).</div>
<div>
<iframe frameborder="0" height="210" src="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/pub?key=0AjEc3FQ6km_LdEZCVjN1VXpISklCc2lxUURiQlBCNFE&output=html&widget=true" width="600"></iframe>
<span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="background-color: white;">MSW Rules 2000 mandate “landfills should always be located away from habitation clusters and other places of social, economic or environmental importance”, which implies lands outside the city. Therefore, increase in MSW will have significant impacts in terms of land required for disposing the waste as it gets more difficult to site landfills (<a href="http://www.pppinindia.com/pdf/ppp_position_paper_solid_waste_mgmt_112k9.pdf">7</a>). Farther the landfill gets from the point of waste generation (city), greater will be the waste transportation cost. The solution to reducing these costs and alternatives to landfilling are discussed in detail in further sections.</span></div>
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A 1998 study by TERI (The Energy Resources Institute, earlier Tata Energy Research Institute) titled ‘<a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344998000330">Solid Waste Management in India: options and opportunities</a>’ calculated the amount of land that was occupied by waste disposed post independence, until 1997. The study compared the land occupied in multiples of the size of a football field and arrived at 71,000 football fields of solid waste, stacked 9 meters high. Based on a business as usual (BAU) scenario of 91% landfilling, the study estimates that the waste generated by 2001 would have occupied 240 sq.km or an area half the size of Mumbai; waste generated by 2011 would have occupied 380 sq.km or about 220,000 football fields or 90% of Chennai, the fourth biggest Indian city area-wise; waste generated by 2021 would need 590 sq.km which is greater than the area of Hyderabad (583 sq.km), the largest Indian city, area-wise (<a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344998000330">18</a>) (<a href="http://www.citymayors.com/statistics/largest-cities-area-250.html">19</a>). The Position Paper on The Solid Waste Management Sector in India, published by Ministry of Finance in 2009, estimates a requirement of more than 1400 sq.km of land for solid waste disposal by the end of 2047 if MSW is not properly handled and is equal to the area of Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai together.</div>
</div>Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com29tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-86119899100093846012012-06-26T02:15:00.002-04:002012-06-27T04:17:00.541-04:00Definition of a Solid Waste Management System<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
A solid waste management (SWM) system includes the generation of waste, storage, collection, transportation, processing and final disposal. This study focused on disposal options for municipal solid waste (MSW) in India. <a href="http://swmindia.blogspot.com/2012/06/definition-of-municipal-solid-waste.html">Read the Definition of Municipal Solid Waste</a>.<br />
<br />
Agricultural and manufactured products of no more value are discarded as wastes. Once items are discarded as waste, they need to be collected. Waste collection in most parts of the world is centralized and all kinds of waste generated by a household or institution are collected together as mixed wastes.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZBlmBAZkCDo/Tc1d_eF4ZXI/AAAAAAAACUY/cvmDk4dRAIY/s1600/IMG_1712+ed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="451" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZBlmBAZkCDo/Tc1d_eF4ZXI/AAAAAAAACUY/cvmDk4dRAIY/s640/IMG_1712+ed.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Collection and transportation of municipal solid waste (MSW) as part of Hyderabad, India's solid waste management (SWM) system</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="background-color: white;">Solid waste management (SWM) is a basic public necessity and this service is provided by respective urban local bodies (ULBs) in India. SWM starts with the collection of solid wastes and ends with their disposal and/or beneficial use. Proper SWM requires separate collection of different wastes, called source separated waste collection. Source separated collection is common in high income regions of the world like Europe, North America and Japan where the infrastructure to transport separate waste streams exists. Most centralized municipal systems in low income countries like India collect solid wastes in a mixed form because source separate collection systems are non-existent. Source separated collection of waste is limited by infrastructure, personnel and public awareness. A significant amount of paper is collected in a source separated form, but informally. In this report, unmixed waste will be specially referred to as source separated waste, in all other cases municipal solid waste (MSW) or solid waste would refer to mixed wastes.</span><br />
Indian cities are still struggling to achieve the collection of all MSW generated. Metros and other big cities in India collect between 70- 90% of MSW. Smaller cities and towns collect less than 50% (6). The benchmark for collection is 100%, which is one of the most important targets for ULBs at present. This is a reason why source separated collection is not yet in the radar.</div>Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-58836923401972440402012-06-26T02:10:00.000-04:002012-06-27T04:15:46.084-04:00Definition of Municipal Solid Waste<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white;">Waste is defined as any material that is not useful and does not represent any economic value to its owner, the owner being the waste generator (10). Depending on the physical state of waste, wastes are categorized into solid, liquid and gaseous. Solid Wastes are categorized into municipal wastes, hazardous wastes, medical wastes and radioactive wastes. Managing solid waste generally involves planning, financing, construction and operation of facilities for the collection, transportation, recycling and final disposition of the waste (10). This study focuses only on the disposal of municipal solid waste (MSW), as an element of overall municipal solid waste management or just solid waste management (SWM). <a href="http://swmindia.blogspot.com/2012/06/definition-of-solid-waste-management.html">Read the Definition of a Solid Waste Management System</a>.</span></div>
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<h4 style="text-align: left;">
Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)</h4>
<span style="background-color: white;">MSW is defined as any waste generated by household, commercial and/or institutional activities and is not hazardous (10). Depending upon the source, MSW is categorized into three types: Residential or household waste which arises from domestic areas from individual houses; commercial wastes and/or institutional wastes which arise from individually larger sources of MSW like hotels, office buildings, schools, etc.; municipal services wastes which arise from area sources like streets, parks, etc. MSW usually contains food wastes, paper, cardboard, plastics, textiles, glass, metals, wood, street sweepings, landscape and tree trimmings, general wastes from parks, beaches, and other recreational areas (11). Sometimes other household wastes like batteries and consumer electronics also get mixed up with MSW.</span></div>Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-593547876899394662012-04-29T20:43:00.001-04:002012-04-29T20:43:11.020-04:00Impact on Quality of Life<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The Global Development Research Center, GDRC defines Quality
of Life (QOL) as the product of the interplay among social, health, economic
and environmental conditions which affect human and social development. QOL
reflects the gap between the hopes and expectations of a person or population
and their present experience.</div>
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In a country like India, which aspires to be a global
economic giant, public health and quality of life are degrading everyday with
the increasing gap between services required and those provided. India is also
considered a sacred nation by the majority of its inhabitants but the streets
and open lands in Indian cities are filled with untreated and rotting garbage.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-83rKnA-_hxw/TVD1QTsSKCI/AAAAAAAACRc/NJY53zQ8GL8/s1600/IMG_0009ed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="385" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-83rKnA-_hxw/TVD1QTsSKCI/AAAAAAAACRc/NJY53zQ8GL8/s640/IMG_0009ed.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="line-height: 14px;">Improper SWM is an Everyday Nuisance to Urban Indians</span>
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Current citizens of India are living at a time of
unprecedented economic growth and changing lifestyles. Unsanitary conditions on
the streets and air pollution in the cities will widen the gap between their
expectations due to the rapidly changing perception of their “being” and “where
they belong” and the prevailing conditions, resulting in plummeting quality of
life.</div>
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Improper SWM is an everyday nuisance to urban Indians.</div>
<a name='more'></a>
Uncollected waste on the streets, acts as a breeding ground for street dogs,
stray animals and other disease vectors. Urban Indians have to deal with stench
on the streets as soon as they leave their homes and have to walk by or drive
by open bins and MSW dumps every day. During the rainy season, many urban
Indians come across the unpleasant experience of having to walk in ankle height
waters mixed with rotting MSW. The author during his research visits in India
observed dry solid waste flying with wind, in the streets of Chennai. Living
with children in such conditions adds to the trauma of adults that their
children have to get exposed to such living conditions. These experiences are
very unpleasant and unsettling and they develop a downgraded image of
themselves to the citizens. There is a danger that such conditions for a
prolonged time impact the sense of community between individuals and encourages
indifference to any initiatives taken towards the betterment of the situation <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550415"><!--[if supportFields]><span style='mso-element:
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1033 <span style='mso-element:field-separator'></span><![endif]-->(29)<!--[if supportFields]><span
style='mso-element:field-end'></span><![endif]--></w:sdt>.<br />
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Such conditions and experiences cause decrease in the work
efficiency and disease. The high disease burden due to improper SWM will result
in a degraded QOL and in turn disrupts the citizen’s sense of well being. These
cumulatively impact the economy of the urban centers negatively.</div>
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This post is section 4.6 in <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf"><b>Sustainable Solid Waste Management in India</b></a>.</div>
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</div>Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-31167580993381497492012-04-19T17:38:00.001-04:002012-04-23T11:32:56.575-04:00Need for Global Attention to Solid Waste Management<br />
This is my post on the <a href="http://wtert.blogspot.com/2012/04/need-for-global-attention-to-solid.html"><b>Global WTERT Council (GWC) Blog</b></a>.<br />
<br />
Some countries have achieved considerable success in solid waste
management. But the rest of the world is grappling to deal with its
wastes. In these places, improper management of solid waste continues to
impact public health of entire communities and cities; pollute local
water, air and land resources; contribute to climate change and ocean
plastic pollution; hinder climate change adaptation; and accelerate
depletion of forests and mines.<br />
<br />
Compared to solid waste
management, we can consider that the world has achieved significant
success in providing other basic necessities like food, drinking water,
energy and economic opportunities. Managing solid wastes properly can
help improve the above services further. Composting organic waste can
help nurture crops and result in a better agricultural yield. Reducing
landfilling and building sanitary landfills will reduce ground and
surface water pollution which can help provide cleaner drinking water.
Energy recovery from non-recyclable wastes can satiate significant
portion of a city's energy requirement. Inclusive waste management where
informal waste recylcers are involved can provide an enormous economic
opportunity to the marginalized urban poor. Additionally, a good solid
waste management plan with cost recovery mechanisms can free tax payers
money for other issues.<br />
<br />
Solid waste management
until now has only been a social responsibility of the corporate world
or one of the services to be provided by the municipality and a
non-priority for national governments. However, in Mumbai, the
improperly managed wastes generate <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">22,000
tons of toxic pollutants like particulate matter, carbon monoxide,
nitrous and sulfur oxides in addition to 10,000 grams of carcinogenic
dioxins and furans every year</a>. These numbers are only for the city
of Mumbai. This is the case in cities all across the developing world.
There are numerous examples where groundwater is polluted by heavy
metals and organic contaminants due to solid waste landfills. Solid
waste management expenditure of above <a href="http://www.treehugger.com/travel/new-york-city-sustainable-city.html">$ 1 billion per year</a> competes with education, poverty, security and other sustainable initiatives in New York City. Fossil fuels for above <a href="http://www.geography.hunter.cuny.edu/~mclarke/wpcoalitionbrochure.htm">500,000 truck trips covering hundreds of miles</a>
are required to transport NYC's waste to landfills outside the city and
state. Similarly, New Delhi spends more than half of its entire
municipal budget on solid waste management, while it is desperate for
investments and maintenance of roads, buildings, and other
infrastructure.<br />
<br />
Solid waste management is not just a
corporate social responsibility or a non-priority service
anymore. Improper waste management is a public health and environmental
crisis, economic loss, operational inefficiency and political and public
awareness failure. Integrated solid waste management can be a nation
building exercise for healthier and wealthier communities. Therefore, it
needs global attention to arrive at solutions which span across such a
wide range of issues.Ranjith Annepuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10057897153179008657noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-88668491196555951272012-04-17T12:56:00.002-04:002012-04-23T11:30:50.944-04:00Focus on Andhra Pradesh (AP) & AP Pollution Control Board uses Data from this Research<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This research has found that Andhra Pradesh state (urban) generates about 11,500 tons per day (TPD) solid waste, which is about 9% of all solid waste generated in India. I'm glad to see this data put to use by The Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB) on their <a href="http://www.appcb.ap.nic.in/municipal/MSW-status.htm">website</a>. On an average, every person in Andhra Pradesh generates 570 grams per day of waste, compared to Tamil Nadu (630 g/day) and Jammu & Kashmir (600 g/day). Andhra Pradesh is among the southern Indian states which together generate 560 g/day per person, the highest waste generation rate compared to East, North and West India.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-L6pNfiOYPFM/TI1pyWmKCzI/AAAAAAAAB_Y/bJmge3v6Y-w/s1600/DSC01551.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eCXdJuGcbE4/Tc1d2pKM_0I/AAAAAAAACTw/wKSgZcgHgKs/s1600/DSC01559.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eCXdJuGcbE4/Tc1d2pKM_0I/AAAAAAAACTw/wKSgZcgHgKs/s640/DSC01559.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Conveyor belt to transport Refuse Derived Fuel into the Waste-to-Energy boiler at the Plant (in Elikatta village) near Hyderabad</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Greater Hyderabad, which is the largest metropolitan area in Andhra Pradesh generates about 5,000 TPD of waste (1.83 million tons per year), followed by Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada, which generate 1,200 TPD (440,000 tons per year) and 700 TPD (250,000 tons per year) respectively.<br />
Andhra Pradesh has been a leader in applying waste management technology <br />
<a name='more'></a>with the help of its special technical wing called Andhra Pradesh Technology Development and Promotion Centre (APTDC). Andhra Pradesh state was the first to host two Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) Waste-to-Energy (WTE) plants, one near Hyderabad and the other between Vijayawada and Guntur.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Hyderabad & Vijayawada</h3>
The RDF combustion plant for Hyderabad is built 50 km away in a village called Elikatta in the district of Mahabubnagar and receives RDF from the processing facility inside the city, whereas the combustion facility at Vijayawada receives half of the RDF from the processing plant situated nearby and the other half from the plant in Guntur, 40 km away. Both these combustion plants are designed to handle 700 TPD of RDF and supplementary biomass to produce 6 MW of electricity. <br />
The author visited the plant at Hyderabad in which the waste is dumped at ground level and fed into a traveling grate, stoker fired boiler by inclined conveyors (Figure 34). Both facilities generated above 6.6 MW (more than design power) during their initial years of operation. Even though the plant at Hyderabad is not running, the boiler is still working and is operated twice every month to maintain the machinery.<br />
<br />
The reasons for the failure to operate the plant are mechanical problems in the condenser and leaks in the piping, which if replaced will get the plant running. A condenser is a common component in process industries and is not unique to WTE plants.<br />
<br />
Halting operations of these projects increased the solid waste management woes of the respective municipalities. Improper waste management all over India impacts public health, results in environmental degradation and wastes valuable resources. Andhra Pradesh alone buries 4.7 million barrels of oil every year due to the absence of waste-to-energy plants which can use this renewable* source of energy. The state also loses 830,000 tons of compost which can be used as a fertilizer due to the absence of source separation and composting facilities. It also loses 625,000 tons of recyclables each year, which is an economically valuable secondary raw material in industry.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Visakhapatnam</h3>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HdR0Xwd1N64/Twm8RZINhuI/AAAAAAAADIE/z2TwZIhoSL0/s1600/3%252C+Impact+of+Improper+SWM+on+Pristine+Ecosystems%252C+Landfill+Fires+in+Visakhapatnam+Landfill%252C+which+is+Located+in+a+Valley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="440" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HdR0Xwd1N64/Twm8RZINhuI/AAAAAAAADIE/z2TwZIhoSL0/s640/3%252C+Impact+of+Improper+SWM+on+Pristine+Ecosystems%252C+Landfill+Fires+in+Visakhapatnam+Landfill%252C+which+is+Located+in+a+Valley.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Landfill fires at the Kapuluppada Village dumpsite near Visakhapatnam</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
A beautiful valley in Kapuluppada village near Visakhapatnam is now a 80 acre landfill, which burns continuously, emitting particulate matter, and other pollutants like dioxins and furans. This landfill has been operating since 2002/2003 and is about to reach maximum capacity. Finding more land for waste disposal will be next to impossible for the municipal corporation, considering the geographical location of Visakhapatnam, with the Bay of Bengal on one side and fertile agricultural lands all around it and the booming real estate sector. While Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) still has to design a comprehensive waste management plan, the GHMC, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has to facilitate the implementation of the integrated solid waste management contracts it has already signed with private enterprises.<br />
<br />
The silver lining is that there are more integrated waste management contracts and WTE plants in discussion than earlier. One such is a new RDF - WTE project, which is under development near Hyderabad by <a href="http://www.rdfindia.com/">RDF Power Projects Ltd.</a> This plant is expected to generate 11 MW of energy by combusting waste.<br />
<br />
* Refere to Section 4.7 <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">here</a>. </div>Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-76884484454581573952012-03-10T03:57:00.004-05:002012-11-25T22:46:38.315-05:00Anaerobic Digestion, Waste-to-Energy and the Hierarchy of Sustainable Waste Management<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Contents:</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">1. <a href="http://swmindia.blogspot.com/2012/01/material-recovery-and-hierarchy-of.html">The Hierarchy: Follow this link</a></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">2. Energy Recovery</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">2.1 Anaerobic Digestion</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">2.2 Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF)</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">2.3 Waste-to-Energy (WTE)</span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rFpEBHboMzQ/T1sY-PGtltI/AAAAAAAADKc/NLA-Vscq5ic/s1600/Spittelau+Waste-to-Energy+Plant,+josylein.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="427" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rFpEBHboMzQ/T1sY-PGtltI/AAAAAAAADKc/NLA-Vscq5ic/s640/Spittelau+Waste-to-Energy+Plant,+josylein.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spittelau Waste-to-Energy Plant, <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/20059806@N06/3366709884/in/set-72157615379427789/">Source: josylein</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><b><a href="http://swmindia.blogspot.com/2012/01/material-recovery-and-hierarchy-of.html">1. Hierarchy of Sustainable Waste Management, Please follow this link</a></b></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><b>2. Energy Recovery</b></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Energy requirements of a community can be satiated to some extent by energy recovery from wastes as a better alternative to landfilling. Energy recovery is a method of recovering the chemical energy in MSW. Chemical energy stored in wastes is a fraction of input energy expended in making those materials. Due to the difference in resources (materials/energy) that can be recovered, energy recovery falls below material recovery on the hierarchy of waste management.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><b>2.1 Energy and Material Recovery: <u>Anaerobic Digestion (AD)</u></b></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><u>Other names:</u> Anaerobic Composting, Biogas, Biomethanation</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The USEPA defines Anaerobic Digestion (AD) as a process where microorganisms break down organic materials, such as food scraps, manure and sewage sludge, in the absence of oxygen. In the context of SWM, anaerobic digestion (also called Anaerobic Composting or Biomethanation) is a method to treat source separated organic waste to recover energy in the form of biogas, and compost in the form of a liquid residual. Biogas consists of methane and carbon dioxide and can be used as fuel or, by using a generator it can be converted to electricity on-site. The liquid slurry can be used as organic fertilizer. The ability to recover energy and compost from organics puts AD above aerobic composting on the hierarchy of waste management.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<a name='more'></a><div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Similar to aerobic composting, AD needs a feed stream of source separated organic wastes. AD of mixed wastes is not recommended because contaminants in the feed can upset the process. Lack of source separated collection systems, and public awareness and involvement strike off large scale AD from feasible SWM options in India. However, AD on a small scale (called small scale biogas) has emerged as an efficient and decentralized method of renewable energy generation, and waste diversion from landfills. It also reduces green house gas emissions by using methane as an energy source which would otherwise be emitted from landfilling waste.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Refer to Section 5.3 <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">in here</a> to check the conformance of small scale anaerobic digestion in India with the hierarchy of sustainable waste management.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><b>2.2 Energy Recovery: </b><u><b>Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF)</b></u></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Refuse Derived Fuel refers to the segregated high calorific fraction of processed MSW. RDF can be defined as the final product from waste materials which have been processed to fulfill guideline, regulatory or industry specifications mainly to achieve a high calorific value to be useful as secondary/substitute fuels in the solid fuel industry (23). RDF is mainly used as a substitute to coal (a fossil fuel) in high-energy industrial processes like power production, cement kilns, steel manufacturing, etc, where RDF’s use can be optimized to enhance economic performance (23). </span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">The organic fraction (including paper) in RDF is considered to be a bio-fuel and is thus renewable. Since the carbon dioxide released by burning the organic fraction of RDF arises from plant and animal material, the net green house gas (GHG) emissions are zero (Section 4.7 <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">in here</a> ). The overall green house emissions from RDF are however not zero. This is due to carbon emissions from burning the plastics fraction left in RDF. The amount of GHG emissions from RDF depends upon the composition or organics and plastics in the MSW stream it is being processed from. Using RDF prevents GHG emissions from landfills, displaces fossil fuels, and reduces the volume of waste that needs to be landfilled, thus increasing their operating life.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">On the hierarchy of waste management, RDF is placed below aerobic composting, as a waste to energy technology. It is a slight variant of the waste-to-energy combustion (WTE) technology, which combusts MSW (processed or as it is) to generate electricity. RDF is different because the objective is to increase the calorific value by processing the fuel.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Refer to Section 5.4 <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">in here</a> to check the conformance of RDF technology in India with the hierarchy of sustainable waste management.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><b>2.3 Energy and Material Recovery: <u>Waste-to-Energy (WTE)</u></b></span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><u>Other names:</u> Energy from Waste (EfW, used in Europe), WTE Combustion</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Waste-to-Energy combustion (WTE) is defined as a process of controlled combustion, using an enclosed device to thermally breakdown combustible solid waste to an ash residue that contains little or no combustible material and that produces, electricity, steam or other energy as a result (24). Even though both WTE combustion and RDF combust MSW, the objective of WTE combustion is treating MSW to reduce its volume. Generating energy and electricity only adds value to this process.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">As discussed in Section 2.4.1 <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">in here</a>, combusting the organic fraction of MSW (a bio-fuel) and releasing carbon dioxide as the end product is a net zero emissions process (Section 4.7 <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">in here</a>). Due to the dominance of organic waste in MSW, MSW is considered as a bio-fuel which can be replenished by agriculture. Also, bio-fuels are renewable. In India, urban MSW contains as much as 60% organic fraction and 10% paper. Therefore, potentially, 70% of energy from WTE plants is renewable energy. Therefore, WTE is recognized as a renewable energy technology by the Government of India (GOI). Australia, Denmark, Japan, Netherlands and the US also recognize WTE as a renewable energy technology (15). </span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Thermal waste to energy technologies are the only solutions to handling mixed wastes. In whatever way mixed wastes are treated, the impurities in it will pollute air, water and land resources. By aerobically composting mixed wastes, the heavy metals and other impurities leach into the compost and are distributed through the compost supply chain. In contrast, WTE is a point source pollution control technology, where the impurities in the input mixed waste are captured using extensive pollution control technologies (Table 18) and can be handled separately. The bottom ash from WTE combustion contains nothing but inert inorganic materials and minerals which could be used to make bricks and other construction material. The fly ash from WTE contains pollutants from the input stream and needs to be disposed off in sanitary landfills. By controlling the types of materials fed in to the boiler, European and Japanese WTE plants are known to have achieved nearly zero emissions in the fly ash too.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">WTE combustion decreases the volume of wastes by up to 90%. Such reduction in volume would prolong the life of a 20 years landfill to 200 years. However, MSW should be combusted after all possible recycling and composting has been done. The input to WTE plants should be the rejects from material recovery and/or composting facilities. Such an integrated system can decrease the amount of wastes landfilled and prolong the life of landfills further. Therefore, WTE combustion is placed below recycling, aerobic and anaerobic digestion on the hierarchy of sustainable waste management.</span></div>
<div style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">Refer to Section 5.5 <a href="http://www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/wtert/sofos/Sustainable%20Solid%20Waste%20Management%20in%20India_Final.pdf">in here</a> to check the conformance of WTE technology in India with the hierarchy of sustainable waste management. </span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TNuY2lbi_TY/TNRbrvg8oOI/AAAAAAAACK4/uRrPN0kxz5w/s1600/waste+management+hierarchy_pyramid.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="227" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TNuY2lbi_TY/TNRbrvg8oOI/AAAAAAAACK4/uRrPN0kxz5w/s400/waste+management+hierarchy_pyramid.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Hierarchy of Sustainable Waste Management developed by the Earth Engineering Center, Columbia University</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-48444847145051043222012-01-24T01:24:00.000-05:002012-04-23T11:35:55.771-04:00Recycling, Composting, and the Hierarchy of Sustainable Waste Management<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Contents</span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">1 The Hierarchy</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2. Material Recovery: Recycling
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3. Material Recovery: Aerobic Composting
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">1. The Hierarchy</span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The Hierarchy of Sustainable
Waste Management (</span><span style="line-height: 115%;">Figure
10</span><span style="line-height: 115%;"></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">)
developed by the Earth Engineering Center at Columbia University is widely used
as a reference to sustainable solid waste management and disposal. This report
is presented in reference to this hierarchy. For the specific purpose of this
study, “Unsanitary Landfilling and Open Burning” has been added to the original
hierarchy of waste management which ends with sanitary landfills (SLFs).
Unsanitary landfilling and open burning will represent the indiscriminate
dumping and burning of MSW and represents the general situation of SWM in India
and other developing countries.</span></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IFWL_syhz80/Tx5LaLP60kI/AAAAAAAADJ0/Ndx4Qr66FSg/s1600/10%252C+Hierarchy+of+Sustainable+Waste+Management.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IFWL_syhz80/Tx5LaLP60kI/AAAAAAAADJ0/Ndx4Qr66FSg/s1600/10%252C+Hierarchy+of+Sustainable+Waste+Management.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="center" class="MsoCaption">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Toc313777815"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Ref307419432"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Figure </span></a><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">10</span><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">, The Hierarchy of Sustainable Waste Management for India and Other Developing Nations</span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The hierarchy of waste management recognizes that reducing
the use of materials and reusing them to be the most environmental friendly.
Source reduction begins with reducing the amount of waste generated and reusing
materials to prevent them from entering the waste stream <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550376">(15)</w:sdt>. Thus, waste
is not generated until the end of “reuse” phase. <br />
<a name='more'></a>Once the waste is generated,
it needs to be collected. Material recovery from waste in the form of recycling
and composting is recognized to be the most effective way of handling wastes.
Due to technical and economic limitations of recycling; product design;
inadequate source separation; and lack of sufficient markets that can use all
sorted materials, most of the MSW generated in India ends up in landfills.
Local authorities should start working with their partners to promote source
separation. While this is being achieved and recycling is increased, provisions
should be made to handle the non-recyclable wastes that are and will be
generated in the future <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550377">(20)</w:sdt>. A sustainable solution
to handle non-recyclable waste is energy recovery. Energy recovery from wastes
falls below material recovery. Landfilling of MSW is equivalent to burying
natural resources which could be used as secondary raw materials or as sources
of energy. However, in the present society, landfills are required as a small
fraction of wastes will have to be landfilled. However, unsanitary landfilling
or open dumping of wastes is not considered as an option to handle MSW and is
not at all recommended.<br />
<br />
<b>2. Material Recovery: <u>Recycling</u></b><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Reducing and reusing are the most effective ways to prevent
generation of wastes. Once the wastes are generated and collected, the best
alternative to handle them would be recycling where the materials generally
undergo a chemical transformation. Sometimes, reusing can also happen after
collection, in cases where informal traders collect materials of no use from
households, reshape or repair them and sell in second-hand markets. Unlike
reusing a used material, recycling involves using the waste as raw material to
make new products. Recycling thus offsets the use of virgin raw materials. </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3Tlgf43h20c/Tc1d5f7uY7I/AAAAAAAACT8/SkWzwBUsnFk/s1600/DSCF6046+ed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="512" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3Tlgf43h20c/Tc1d5f7uY7I/AAAAAAAACT8/SkWzwBUsnFk/s640/DSCF6046+ed.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 14px;">Figure </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 14px;">23</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 14px;">, Sorted metal for further processing and eventual recycling</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It is known that as much as 95% of a product’s environmental
impact occurs before its discarded <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550378">(21)</w:sdt>,
most of it during its manufacturing and extraction of virgin raw materials.
Thus, recycling is pivotal in reducing the overall life cycle impacts of a
material on environment and public health. Recycling however requires a
separated stream of waste, whether source separated or separated later on
(after collection).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Due to the limitations for source separation (See Section 5.6),
wastes are collected in a mixed form which is referred to as municipal solid
waste (MSW). Once the wastes are mixed it becomes difficult to separate them.
Recyclables can still be separated manually to some extent. Such separation and
sale of recyclables from mixed wastes provides livelihood to marginalized urban
populations in low and middle income countries. High income countries use
machines to do the same but they would need the recyclables to be collected as
a separate dry stream without mixing with organic food wastes. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The separated stocks of paper, plastic, glass and metal can then
be recycled. A hundred percent separation of these materials from MSW is highly
energy and time intensive and is generally not carried out. Therefore, mixing
of waste will always result in a fraction of residues, which can neither be recycled
nor composted and needs to be combusted in RDF or WTE plants to avoid landfilling,
and generate energy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>3. Material Recovery: <u>Aerobic Composting</u></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Similar to the recycling of inorganic materials, source separated
organic wastes can be composted and the compost obtained can be used as an
organic fertilizer on agricultural fields. Organic compost is rich in plant
macro nutrients like Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium, and other essential
micro nutrients. Advantages of using organic manure in agriculture are well
established and are a part of public knowledge.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BDw1XT6JQig/Tc1eF8lDP8I/AAAAAAAACU0/tug7g2RHoJA/s1600/IMG_5289+ed.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="539" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BDw1XT6JQig/Tc1eF8lDP8I/AAAAAAAACU0/tug7g2RHoJA/s640/IMG_5289+ed.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The final product from a MSW composting (or mechanical biological treatment) facility </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) defines composting
as the biological decomposition of biodegradable solid waste under
predominantly aerobic conditions to a state that is sufficiently stable for
nuisance-free storage and handling and is satisfactorily matured for safe use
in agriculture. Composting can also be defined as human intervention into the
natural process of decomposition as noted by Cornell Waste Management
Institute. The biological decomposition accomplished by microbes during the
process involves oxidation of carbon present in the organic waste. Energy
released during oxidation is the cause for rise in temperatures in windrows
during composting. Due to this energy loss, aerobic composting falls below
anaerobic composting on the hierarchy of waste management. Anaerobic composting
recovers both energy and compost. Life cycle impacts of extracting virgin raw
materials and manufacturing make material recovery options like recycling and
composting the most environment friendly methods to handle waste. They are
positioned higher on the hierarchy compared to other beneficial waste handling
options like energy recovery. However, quality of the compost product depends
upon the quality of input waste. Composting mixed wastes results in low quality
compost, which is less beneficial and has the potential to introduce heavy
metals into human food chain.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Aerobic composting of mixed waste results in a compost
contaminated by organic and inorganic materials, mainly heavy metals.
Contamination of MSW compost by heavy metals can cause harm to public health
and environment and is the major concern leading to its restricted agricultural
use <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550379">(22)</w:sdt>. Mixed waste composting is therefore not an
option for sustainable waste management, but this issue is not a part of public
knowledge. Mixed waste composting is widely practiced and is considered better
(if not best) <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550380">(8)</w:sdt>
in countries like India where more than 91% of MSW is landfilled and there are
no other alternatives. It is considered better probably because public health
and environmental impacts of unsanitary landfilling are more firmly established
by research than those impacts due to heavy metal contamination of MSW compost.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sources of urban organic wastes</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">●<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span>Household kitchen waste<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">●<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span>Food waste from restaurants, hotels and food joints<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">●<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span>Ve<span style="font-family: inherit;">getable market & slaughterhouse waste<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">●<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span>Livestock & poultry waste</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: inherit; margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-size: small;">●<span style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> Sewage sludge</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="id.08c49402b650"></a></div>
</div>Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-83243187510472679222012-01-24T00:52:00.002-05:002012-01-24T00:56:46.924-05:00Recognition and Integration of the Informal Sector in India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
C<span style="font-family: inherit;">ontents</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1. Organizing the Informal Sector</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2. Public Policy
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3. Integrating the Informal Sector into Formal SWM Systems</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="text-indent: -24px;">4. Change in Perception</span>
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="text-indent: -24px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>1. Organizing the Informal Sector</b>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The informal recycling sector in India is in fact
well-structured and has a huge presence, especially in mega cities. This sector
is responsible for the recycling of around 70% of plastic waste <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550439">(37)</w:sdt> and up to 56% of all
recyclable waste generated in India. On the basis of all information collected
during this visit, the author estimates that the informal sector recycles about
10 million tons of recyclable waste per year. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8DgxSU7Hae8/Tc1eChV9UdI/AAAAAAAACUw/1wA4tV0St0w/s1600/IMG_5141+ed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="362" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8DgxSU7Hae8/Tc1eChV9UdI/AAAAAAAACUw/1wA4tV0St0w/s640/IMG_5141+ed.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">A women waste-picker employed at a composting facility to separate recyclables from the MSW</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
The high percentage of recycling the informal sector is able
to achieve is the cumulative effort of large numbers of WPs on the streets, at
the bins and dumpsites. For example, the informal sector in Delhi employs about
150,000 people who are 0.9 % of the population of Delhi (16.75 million) <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550441">(3)</w:sdt> <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550440">(33)</w:sdt>
<w:sdt citation="t" id="50550452">(39)</w:sdt>.
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">Equally large populations of waste-pickers are estimated in Mumbai, Kolkata and
Chennai. Other cities, such as Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Ahmadabad have slightly
lower populations of waste-pickers. Based on information collected during this
trip, the author estimates the total number of people involved in informal
recycling in India to be 2.86 million, i.e. 0.75% of the urban population (377
million) or 0.23 % of the total population of India (1,210 million).
Numerically waste pickers in India possibly outnumber those in any single
country in the world <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550454">(36)</w:sdt>. Coordinating such a
large work force will be a heavy burden on ULBs due to the lack of necessary
managerial resources.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>2. Public Policy</b></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; font-family: inherit; text-indent: -0.25in;">Public policies towards the informal waste sector are largely negative in most parts of the world. It is either because of embarrassment at the presence of waste pickers or ‘concern’ for their inhuman and unhygienic working and living conditions.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This has led to police harassment as in Colombia; to neglect as in parts of West Africa; to collusion, where waste pickers are tolerated in return for either bribes or support to political parties as in Mexico City <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550455">(40)</w:sdt>. In case of developed economies, they have allowed their informal recycling systems to disappear and as a result are now struggling to re-establish systems to rebuild recycling percentages to former levels and meet the ever-increasing recycling targets <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550456">(40)</w:sdt><b><span style="color: #3d85c6;">. </span></b>But, the Government of India has clearly held a different path with an informed perspective. Blind eye towards waste-picking until now has been largely due to the sector's unreliability and inadequacy in managing enormous quantities of urban wastes. <span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Their absorption into formal systems is also hindered by their lack of accountability unlike formal systems which are accountable to the public.</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoCaption" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoCaption" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><b>3. Integrating the Informal Sector into Formal SWM Systems</b> </span><b><w:sdt citation="t" id="50551431"><span style="font-weight: normal;">(36)</span></w:sdt></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">To
transform the aesthetics of waste handling by the informal sector, it has to be<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">a)<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">assisted to provide
professionalized and efficient waste collection services;<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">b)<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">encouraged to introduce
value added services;<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">c)<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">convinced about the
importance of service level benchmarks and monitoring;<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">d)<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">made aware of the importance
of maintaining work ethic and discipline; and<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">e)<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">trained according to their
work, depending on whether they are waste pickers, itinerant buyers, sorters or
graders.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<b style="text-indent: -0.25in;">4. Change in Perception</b></div>
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</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The role of informal sector in recycling resources was
recognized in the latest Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011
that were regulated by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF). These
rules make municipal authorities responsible for coordination of all stake
holders involved in waste management, including waste pickers. Such laws are
necessary in inching towards sustainable waste management and need support in
the form of relevant policy changes at the national level. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Institutionalizing the informal sector can overcome the
issue of unreliability. This was evident in the case of road sweeping in
Hyderabad, where the contracts were awarded to organized groups of informal
waste pickers and workers. Also, employing self-help groups of waste pickers in
door-to-door collection has proven successful nationwide; individuals in these
groups have much better working conditions compared to earlier <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550457">(41)</w:sdt>. Thus, the focus
should be on institutionalizing the informal sector. Considering the ongoing
widespread privatization of the MSWM sector, it is very important to frame
policies that make the employment of waste-pickers in the corporate sector
easier. Once employed, the minimum wage requirements, labor laws and
operational health and safety regulations will ensure their welfare. However,
solving intricacies which arise due to such regulations will be a formidable
challenge to policy makers. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;">Further analysis and studies on the sector’s
impact on a) diverting waste from landfills and thus b) reducing need for
transportation, along with c) waste characteristics before and after
waste-picking will help involving informal sector in MSWM plans further.</span><br />
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<v:roundrect arcsize="10923f" id="_x0000_s1026" strokecolor="#666" strokeweight="1pt" style="height: 343.4pt; left: 0px; margin-left: 173.3pt; margin-top: 1.75pt; position: absolute; width: 294.85pt; z-index: -1;" wrapcoords="3436 -74 2536 0 655 740 655 1110 -82 2293 -82 18937 327 20047 1555 21304 2945 21748 3273 21748 18491 21748 18900 21748 20127 21378 20209 21230 21355 20121 21355 20047 21764 18863 21764 3477 21600 2293 20864 1110 20945 814 18982 0 18082 -74 3436 -74"><v:fill color2="#999" focus="100%" focusposition="1" focussize="" type="gradient"><v:shadow color="#7f7f7f" offset2="-3pt" offset="1pt" opacity=".5" type="perspective"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><v:textbox></v:textbox></span></v:shadow></v:fill></v:roundrect></div>
<div style="text-indent: -24px;">
<br /></div>
</div>Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5380640596599659882.post-63798958761057956442012-01-24T00:43:00.002-05:002012-01-24T00:53:02.243-05:00Informal Recycling Sector - Inadequacy, Unpredictability and Health<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Contents<br />
<div>
1. Inadequacy and Unpredictability</div>
<div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">2. </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Hurdles in Organizing Waste Pickers</span>
</div>
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<span style="line-height: 18px;">3. Health Risk Assessment of Waste-Pickers</span>
</div>
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<span style="line-height: 18px;"><br /></span></div>
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<b>1. Inadequacy and Unpredictability</b>
</div>
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The existence of the informal recycling sector in Indian
cities is useful to municipal corporations and beneficial to the community and
environment. However, at the same time waste pickers are known to burn wastes
at landfills <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550434">(38)</w:sdt>
in order to recover metals or to keep warm at night. Open burning of wastes by
waste-pickers and other people in addition to intentionally or accidentally set
landfill fires are a major source of air pollution in Indian cities, emitting
particulates, carbon monoxide and organic compounds including toxic dioxins <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550435">(5)</w:sdt>. Waste-pickers are
constantly exposed to emissions, have unhealthy living conditions and are prone
to injuries and diseases, all of which decrease their overall life expectancy.
The ill-health of waste pickers is a public health problem and even though they
are generally not in contact with the public, it poses a threat to the overall
health of the community.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 115%;">Informal
recycling is only a part of the solution to the SWM crisis in India. </span></div>
<a name='more'></a>At
maximum potential, the informal sector can handle about only 20 - 30% of the
generated wastes and also it is absent in cities like Kochi where labor unions
do not allow people to work without a membership, which is denied to waste
pickers. Though complete absence of the informal recycling is not the case
everywhere, this sector is small in many cities. Significant informal recycling
occurs in only the largest cities of a state or region. Also, waste-picking at landfills
is difficult because of the height/depth of waste heaps. Mixed wastes are
dumped in heaps at landfills and limit foraging to the top layers of the heap,
leaving those at the bottom untouched. In summary, the Informal recycling
sector in its present state is inadequate and unreliable in <v:roundrect arcsize="10923f" id="_x0000_s1026" strokecolor="#666" strokeweight="1pt" style="height: 428.15pt; left: 0px; margin-left: -4.85pt; margin-top: 109.15pt; position: absolute; text-align: -webkit-auto; width: 481.45pt; z-index: -1;" wrapcoords="3436 -74 2536 0 655 740 655 1110 -82 2293 -82 18937 327 20047 1555 21304 2945 21748 3273 21748 18491 21748 18900 21748 20127 21378 20209 21230 21355 20121 21355 20047 21764 18863 21764 3477 21600 2293 20864 1110 20945 814 18982 0 18082 -74 3436 -74"><br /></v:roundrect><span style="line-height: 115%;">solving
the SWM crisis.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoCaption" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<b><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoCaption" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;">
<b><span style="font-size: 11pt;">2. </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Hurdles in Organizing Waste Pickers</span><span style="line-height: 18px;"> <w:sdt citation="t" id="50551429"><span style="font-weight: normal;">(36)</span></w:sdt></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;">-<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 18px;">WP organizations are not very extensive geographically across India. Almost all organizations work in only metros and other large cities;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;">-<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 18px;">WPs are dispersed, argumentative and arrogant at times, street wise and street smart and willing to challenge and ask questions simply because they have nothing to lose being where they are;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;">-<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 18px;">WPs tend to be migrants who return to their villages during specific periods in the year. Therefore, all organizing and formal work has to take into account this demographic trend, which is very challenging, given the demands of formal service provision;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;">-<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 18px;">Given the informal nature of work, WPs enjoy flexibility in work schedules. Organizing them becomes additionally challenging as there is no fixed routine within which to intervene and make time for organizing activities;<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 18px;">-<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';"> </span></span><span style="line-height: 18px;">The degree to which a particular material will be recycled depends on income levels; the existence of local and national markets; the need for secondary raw materials; the level of financial and regulatory governmental intervention; prices of virgin materials and the international trade in secondary raw materials and relevant treaties <b><w:sdt citation="t" id="50551430"><span style="font-weight: normal;">(16)</span></w:sdt></b> , therefore all recyclables need not necessarily be recycled by the sector and are thus MSW of no value is left on streets or burnt openly.</span></div>
<br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><b>3. Health Risk Assessment of Waste-Pickers</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The working conditions for pickers and collectors are
unhygienic and safety equipment such as gloves and boots are unaffordable for
waste pickers. Thus, the health risks for WPs are high. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Due to the lack of safety equipment, <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550436">(36)</w:sdt></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .75in 1.0in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">a.<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';">
</span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">68% of the WPs in Delhi injure themselves regularly, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .75in 1.0in; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;">b.<span style="font: normal normal normal 7pt/normal 'Times New Roman';">
</span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;">21% injure themselves often<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“They (WPs) are constantly exposed to stench produced by
rotting waste and the smoke and fumes produced by open burning of waste. They
are also exposed to air-borne bacteria as well as infectious or toxic materials
present in solid waste are determinants for respiratory and dermatological
problems, eye infections and low life expectancy.” <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550437">(16)</w:sdt></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_0kNDxqPG4Q/Tx5Elqrj1NI/AAAAAAAADJs/3DOTod31uv0/s1600/26%252C+Higher+Incidence+of+all+Diseases+tested+for+in+waste+pickers%252C+Appendix+10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_0kNDxqPG4Q/Tx5Elqrj1NI/AAAAAAAADJs/3DOTod31uv0/s1600/26%252C+Higher+Incidence+of+all+Diseases+tested+for+in+waste+pickers%252C+Appendix+10.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5380640596599659882" name="_Toc313777831"></a><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Figure </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">26</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">,
Higher Incidence of all Diseases tested for in waste pickers; </span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Appendix 10</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<w:sdt citation="t"></w:sdt></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
WPs were also found to be suffering from occupation related
musculo-skeletal problems, respiratory and gastro-intestinal ailments. 82% of
the women waste pickers studied in a health study were found to be severely anemic.
This could be not only as a result of malnutrition, but also due to exposure to
toxics, particularly heavy metals <w:sdt citation="t" id="50550438">(36)</w:sdt>. During a clinical
examination of municipal workers, waste pickers and controls conducted in
Kolkata, it was found that waste pickers had a higher incidence of all 16
health problems tested for, compared to the control population (CP) and MSW
staff (<span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Figure 26</span>).
The five most prevalent health problems observed in waste pickers’ were
Cardiovascular risk (77%, around 8 times that of CP), Altered immunity (64%, around
6 times that of CP), Breathing problem (56%, around 3 times that of CP), Nose
and throat infections (54%, around 3 times that of CP) and Lung infections
(53%, around 3 times that of CP). </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The increased risk of ailments due to direct exposure to MSW
is important to know. The five health problems with increased risk of incidence
in WPs are Chromosome break (around 12 times that of CP), Elevated mucus
production (11 times that of CP), Covert lung hemorrhage (around 8 times that
of CP), Cardiovascular risk and High PM<sub>10</sub> exposure (around 7 times
that of CP). There is a clear decrease in the incidence and prevalence of
health problems among MSW staff workers, as they use better protective wear,
take precautions and can easily access other facilities due to the formal
nature of their employment. The prevalence of health problems in MSW staff
workers is also high compared to the control population and strict measures
should be taken by ULBs to improve their health and thus the overall health of
the city.</div>
</div>
</div>Ranjithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00067129012987796541noreply@blogger.com2