[box type=”shadow” ]Over the years the world (land, water &air) is increasingly being polluted and environment protection agencies are fighting a losing battle. The main pollutants are the solid wastes which contaminate the water bodies and restrict the free flow and prevent their natural biological purification. J.C. Mahanti, Adya Pulp & Paper Consultants Ltd, discusses suitable systems for waste collection[/box]
A typical solid waste management system displays an array of problems, including low collection coverage and irregular collection services, crude open dumping and burning without air and water pollution control, the breeding of flies and vermin, and the handling and control of informal waste picking or scavenging activities.
A major component of solid waste is discarded packaging material that is not useful or of economic value to it’s owner i.e. the waste generator. Litter is the waste that is discarded on public property for collection by the cleaning agencies. It mainly comprises of bottles, wrappers and cartons, cigarette stubs, etc.
Packaging is defined as any material which is used to contain, protect, handle, deliver and present goods while at the same time, maintaining the brand image. According to the World Packaging Organisation, the global packaging industry has an annual turnover of US$ 500 billion. A number of key social and market trends are having a major impact on packaging in recent years. These include: smaller households with consequent demand for smaller pack size, increasing requirement of ready to process food & beverages and the growing use of cosmetics and packaged healthcare products. The Indian packaging industry constitutes about 4% of the global packaging industry. The per capita packaging consumption in India is quite low at 3.4kgs, compared to many other countries (like China 20kgs, Germany 42kgs & USA 71kg).
The estimated total annual consumption has been tabulated below:
| Material | Use | Reasons for preference | Consumption, million TPA |
| Paper & board | Cartons, boxes, bags & wrappers. | Light weight, low cost, easy availability & disposal | 6.50 |
| Plastics. | Pouches, bottles, caps, cartons, bags, wrappers, containers. |
Light weight, corrosion resistant, versatility of use, attractive display. | 8.50 |
| Aluminium | Collapsible tubes, foils, cans & closures, containers. |
Tasteless & odourless with good barrier properties, greaseproof & shrinkproof. | 3.00 |
| Glass | Bottles, jars & jugs. | Good strength with high rigidity, transparent, gas & water vapour barrier, chemically inert. |
4.50 |
| Tin plate | Cans, containers & caps. | High strength with good barrier properties, long self life, reusable & recyclable. | 6.50 |
| Laminates(plastics & paper) |
Pouches, films, tubes & bags. | High strength with good barrier properties, grease resistant, attractive design display, suitable for heat sealing. |
4.50 |
| Others | 5.00 |
Today a major part of the paper produced is being used for packaging of goods. Changes in consumer preferences, rising petrochemical costs have led to food and consumer products companies to look for alternatives to plastics based packaging. While, glass, plastics and metals are recycled, paper is both recyclable and biodegradable hence, more manufacturers are opting for paper based packaging. With growth in demand key special grades paper have evolved to meet different packaging options. Presently, about seven million tonnes of paper is being consumed in India for packaging, of which only 33% is being collected and recycled.
As estimated by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), 15,342 tonnes of plastic waste are produced every day, of which about 60% is recycled. While the recycling rate is quite high(Global average 14%), over 6,100 tonnes end up as landfillor polluting ground water resources.
The present situation and it’s solution
The present landfill method creates land pollution (and in most cases, ground water contamination). The waste is not sorted for recycling, composting or any other form of environmental treatment. Hazardous toxic wastes lie side by side with organic wastes in the landfill. Quite often, the garbage is dumped in the bank of the neighbouring river. In most rural areas there is no organised garbage collection and it is dumped on the nearest vacant public land earmarked for cattle grazing and other public purposes. Also, the land by the sides of the passing railway lines are littered with paper, plastics, bottles etc. thrown by passengers from the passing trains.
How to overcome the problems
Dirt is the right thing in the wrong place. For example, grease is not dirt in the chain of the bicycle but becomes so, on the sleeve of the shirt. Similarly, paper, plastic and metal wastes etc. are valuable material for recycling if handled properly. As a first step, packaging material (like bottles, cans, cartons etc.) should be reused as far as practicable. Glass bottles can be reused 50 times and pet bottles up to 15 times. The material discarded as garbage should be segregated and stored in separate containers for recycling or suitable disposal. This is a very important step as contaminated material is often not suitable for recycling. Organic material like kitchen and garden waste should be converted to compost and enrich the soil. Of course, reuse is preferable to recycling as the later involves loss of material, consumption of energy and causes pollution.
The recovery and recycling rate of waste paper in India is presently below 30% where as it is 73% in Western Europe (Global 57%).
About 15,342 tonnes of plastics waste is produced in India every day of which 60% is recycled. According to Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FIICCI), the plastics recycling industry in India employs over1. 6 million people and has more than 7,500 recycling units. In HDPE bottle-to-bottle recycling, the process of used-material sorting and separation must meet highest demands. For example, food-quality packaging is being generated from HDPE milk bottles. It must be guaranteed that different types of plastics and contaminant materials are reliably separated. Since, the garbage collectors are paid by weight, there is no incentive for them to sort out the waste.
Mechanised sorting units should be installed in all the Metros to handle the huge volume of garbage produced. This will boost recycling and reduce the amount of garbage to be disposed off.
Mechanised sorting and bailing of municipal waste
Setting up of recycling units in rural localities close to Metros and cities will create employment and prevent migration of rural population to cities in search of livelihood. For example, a 50 tonnes per day mill producing packaging paper and board by recycling reclaimed waste paper will provide employment to about 125 to 150 people. Downstream units for producing cartons, boxes, cups, plates, pouches etc. will come up creating further employment opportunities. Setting up of these manufacturing units in rural and semi-rural areas will provide“on the job“training to the persons of the locality and contribute to skill development. Also, as part of their social responsibility, the units will promote hygiene, education, sports and cultural activities, provide clean drinking water,etc. Modern living in rural areas with better housing, electricity (Solar), running water and flush toilets, cooking gas (Bio), scientific garbage disposal, etc., are consequences of development through increased employment and not the other way around.
Below is the list of activities required by a community while planning waste management.
1. Consultation with interested stakeholders (Sanitation, transport, environment, public health, business)
2. Identify potential waste streams (Quantity of waste generated by each stream, the possibility of reduction at source)
3. Evaluate the reuse and recycling programme. (Availability of recycling facilities and market for reused and recycled products)
4. Consider waste collection strategies (How to separate the wastes and reduce the volume before collection)
5. Determine waste processing sites (Suitable for sorting, staging, processing and storage without contamination)
6. Potential waste management options. (Reuse, recycling, composting, treatment before disposal and transport to remote site)
7. Create a community outreach plan (Inform the community about the waste management related activities and the involvement required by them)
8. Address the health and safety issues of waste management operators. (Appropriate training with knowledge of the hazards and risks involved as well as, use of protective equipment).
In view of the importance of separation of wastes at source for their proper management and disposal, most developed countries have laid down strict norms and rules with provision of adequate facilities. The practice in Germany has been detailed below as an example.
Waste Disposal in Germany
Germany produces 30 million tons of garbage annually and the country has been very successful in it’s fight against growing garbage heaps. The manufacturers and retailers have to pay a “Green Dot” fees on products; the more the packaging the higher the fee. This has reduced the garbage by about a million tons per year. However, major success of the programme is the proper sorting and processing of the garbage. It has implemented the EU policy on packaging through its Ordinance on the Avoidance and Recovery of Packaging Waste. The Ordinance makes industry responsible for packaging at the end of its life cycle, including the costs of collecting, sorting, and recycling packaging after consumers discard it, and calls for retailers to install bins so that customers may leave primary and secondary packaging in stores. It also imposes mandatory deposits on nonrefillable containers for beverages, washing and cleansing agents, and water-based paints. Furthermore, the Ordinance also rules out incineration for energy recovery as an option.
Return of bottles and cans
Throwing bottles and other beverage packaging in the garbage bin is a waste of money. These would be refilled many times before they are sent to be recycled into new containers. When you purchase something like Coke or beer in a bottle or can, you pay the advertised price plus a deposit. When you return the empty bottles and cans through a machine it issues a voucher for the refund amount to be adjusted against purchases. This results in zero litter, minimum environmental impact and saving in cost by the municipalities.
Garbage bins of different colours
Bins of different colours are provided in residential buildings and public places for different wastes like glass, paper, plastics which are collected on designated days in the week. Any kind of bottle or glass jar that is non-returnable and on which a deposit has not been paid belongs in the designated glass bins. This includes wine bottles, jam/preserve jars, oil bottles, juice bottles and even bath-salt bottles. (Ceramics, china, mirrors and wine corks do not belong in the glass bins.) Glass is sorted by color. There are different slots for depositing green, brown and clear glass. The other bins are color coded; green, blue, yellow, brown and gray.
Yellow; Plastic, polystyrene, aluminum, tinplate and “composite” materials like beverage cartons made of a mixture of materials belong in the yellow bin or are put in the yellow bags. Empty spray cans are also allowed here. (It is suggested that stuff is not put inside each other, like the yogurt cup inside the baked beans tin). As the stuff gets sorted by hand, it is requested to rinse the cans and cups before throwing them in the bin.
Brown: Now we are left with the “other stuff” and biological waste, which by the way, makes up almost 50 percent of the total garbage produced in Germany. Bio stuff is anything destined for the compost heap in a good gardener’s back yard. This includes kitchen scraps, peels, leftover food, coffee filters, tea bags and garden waste. There will probably be a separate brown bin for this. The end result of bio recycling is either energy through the natural fermenting gasses, which is captured and utilized, or garden compost.
Grey: In case there is no scope or intention of composting the biological waste, the stuff is thrown in to the gray bin with house hold wastes “almost the rest”. This includes ash, cigarette butts, old household objects like hairbrushes and frying pans, textiles and nylon stockings, nappies/diapers, tissues, other personal hygiene items, extremely dirty paper, etc. Everything in the gray bins is incinerated.
We are now left with “the rest”, i.e. the stuff that did not feature anywhere else. That is the hazardous waste, which includes fluorescent tubes, batteries and acids, cans of paint still containing paint, thinners, adhesives, corrosives, disinfectants, insecticides, and so forth. A notice is issued by the local town council on when and where the truck collecting this kind of waste will be available. Batteries can be disposed of separately in a bin provided in the local shopping area.
Another useful feature of the waste disposal system in most cities is the Recyclingh of, an outlying area with containers to which one can transport and deposit heavy garbage like old furniture, electrical appliances etc.
A recent LCA fromthe IFEU Institute shows that refillable bottles have 50 to 60% lower global warming potential than one-way beverage containers. For instance, using only refillable bottles for all non-alcoholic beverages in Germany compared to the use of one-way packaging could annually reduce the global warming emissions with 1.26 million tonnes CO2 equivalents.