The Challenges of Segregation of Municipal Solid Waste in India - A Review

1.    Introduction

India is quickly transitioning from an agricultural to an industrial and service-oriented economy. About 31.2% of the population today lives in cities. India is a huge country comprised of 29 states and seven union territories (UTs). Greater Mumbai, Delhi, and Kolkata are the three megacities with populations of more than 10 million, 53 cities with populations of more over one million, and 415 cities with populations of 100,000 or more(Joshi and Ahmed, 2016). Solid waste management (SWM) is one of the most neglected parts of the environment in India and other developing countries. The main reason of India's ineffective MSWM systems is unsorted garbage. The current strategy of handling MSW, such as collection, transportation, and treatment, results in inefficient resource usage. Unsegregated municipal solid trash has become a difficult problem not just for India, but for other emerging countries as well. A massive volume of discarded MSW (municipal solid waste) is causing groundwater pollution, soil contamination, and environmental damage. If the present MSWM system does not provide a solution to these difficulties, the whole municipal mixed trash will wind up at dumpsites. The majority of the time, garbage is sorted by the unorganised sector and occasionally by waste producers. The sorting and segregation process takes place in extremely dangerous and unsafe conditions. The viability of segregation is logically low because it segregates just important disposed of constituents from the waste stream  (Shukla et al., 2021).

Rapid urbanisation, urban expansion, and economic development have not only transformed the physical scale of cities, but have also put substantial extra strain on infrastructure services throughout Indian cities. While urbanisation in India is rising, with 31% of the population already living in cities, accounting for 11 percent of global population, and 53 metropolitan areas expected to grow to 87 by 2031. These factors have an impact on consumption rates, which increase garbage formation and alter waste composition. The supervision of operations linked to the collection, transportation, treatment, and disposal of MSW is known as solid waste management. It entails considering economic, aesthetic, energy, and conservation principles(Mani and Singh, 2016).

2.    India's existing waste management scenario

a.    Collection and Generation

Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is produced in India's metropolitan regions at a rate of 62 million tonnes each year, with a potential increase to 436 million tonnes by 2050. If ULBs in India continue to rely on landfills for MSW treatment, the population of India is expected to be 1,823 million by 2051(Joshi and Ahmed, 2016).

b.    Disposal

In India, practically every city, town, or hamlet used an improper method of disposing of MSW. In these cities, 40 saw a rise in garbage production, 7 saw a drop, and 6 saw essentially no change. Despite these cities' growing population during the past decade, there was no substantial cause for a reduction in garbage creation(Joshi and Ahmed, 2016).

c.    Recycling and reuse

Even though India has very low consumption rates compared to the industrialised world, the concept of reuse has always existed, mostly because of the country's socioeconomic situation and in part because of customs. Old newspapers, magazines, books, empty glass and plastic bottles, metal cans, and other items are often collected and sold in all economic categories(Joshi and Ahmed, 2016).

3.    Problems related with MSWM

a.    In India, all trash types are mixed together, including biodegradable, recyclable, construction, hazardous, and dirty waste. There will be no segregation system at the source. In rural regions, kitchen or farm waste was once used to feed to bio gas or feed the animals (Vaidya et al., 2014).

b.    In India, a law is required for domestic garbage removal and treatment. Newly built cities are having difficulty finding a landfill location to discharge the city's garbage. Builders and developers must realise the necessity of MSWM and provide essential disposal methods that will benefit the local community(Vaidya et al., 2014).

c.    Medical and quarantine waste incineration is not a safe solution. Coordination of actions with medical equipment providers could aid in reducing waste. A large amount of pharmaceutical waste can be redirected for recycling or reuse if it is appropriately handled at the point of collection. This is especially relevant because many medical products contain PVC, one of the worst materials in terms of dioxin production when combusted(Narayana, 2009).

4.    Suggested strategies for improvement

a.    Local governments should explore organising and controlling this informal system so that municipal authorities may effectively regulate it. Not only is it important to increase the efficiency and sanitation of urban solid waste collection, but another important aspect is to create job possibilities for these informal garbage collectors. The community collection system of residential recyclable waste could be easily appreciated and implemented in India(Vaidya et al., 2014).

b.    The International Society of Waste Managers' and Technologists' (ISWM) has called for a review of the current waste collection method, with the aim of improving source separation and reducing energy and labour inputs to any downstream process. ISWM says: A successful ISWM system needs to have systematic waste separation. (Vaidya et al., 2014).

c.    Vermicomposting is the process of stabilising organic waste with the help of earthworms and aerobic microorganisms. Earthworms consume five times their body weight in organic matter every day, feeding on partially digested materials. In the intestine of the worms, the ingested food is further digested, resulting in particle size reduction(Sharholy et al., 2008).

5.    Concluding remark

The public should be made aware of the hazards posed by household waste, according to the World Health Organisation's (WHO) World Waste Report 2014. Currently there is no source biodegradable waste separation between non-biodegradable and recyclable garbage at the waste generation and collection levels. Proper waste segregation would result in more options and opportunities for scientific waste disposal. Municipal solid waste collecting transportation need to be maintained in good condition.In India, there is a significant gap among policy and execution in the management of waste from municipalities. Appropriate waste segregation will indeed result in more choices and possibilities for scientific waste disposal.

6.    References

Joshi, R., Ahmed, S., 2016. Status and challenges of municipal solid waste management in India: A review. Cogent Environmental Science 2, 1139434. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311843.2016.1139434
Mani, S., Singh, S., 2016. Sustainable Municipal Solid Waste Management in India: A Policy Agenda. Procedia Environmental Sciences 35, 150–157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proenv.2016.07.064
Narayana, T., 2009. Municipal solid waste management in India: From waste disposal to recovery of resources? Waste Management 29, 1163–1166. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2008.06.038
Sharholy, M., Ahmad, K., Mahmood, G., Trivedi, R.C., 2008. Municipal solid waste management in Indian cities – A review. Waste Management 28, 459–467. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2007.02.008
Shukla, P., Sharma, P.K., Pandey, S., Chintala, V., 2021. Unsegregated Municipal Solid Waste in India - Current Scenario, Challenges and Way Forward. NEPT 20. https://doi.org/10.46488/NEPT.2021.v20i02.048
Vaidya, P., Kumar, R., Kantoji, P.R., 2014. Status of municipal solid waste management system in India. IJETM 17, 310. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJETM.2014.061814