Environment Day: Laws in place yet garbage piles up

Just before the completion of two-years of the BJP-led NDA government in power, the environment ministry overhauled the waste management regulations in the country. Still, it seems to be a long, bumpy road ahead. Five categories whose management rules saw restructuring are: solid waste, plastic waste, e-waste, biomedical waste and hazardous waste. The ministry also introduced a new sixth category that has emerged as the main source of air pollution in and around India’s major cities — the construction and demolition waste.

While the main thrust in all the categories has been extended producers’ responsibility, plan to levy user fee and spot fine in some cases has also been introduced for the first time. As environment minister Prakash Javadekar exhorted, the moot point is to segregate, collect, treat and dispose the waste. More focus on creation of waste processing facilities with better involvement of state governments and local bodies has also been envisaged, besides integrating the rag-picker community into a formal sector. Although these measures may seem to bring some relief to the growing pollution in the country, there is no plausible explanation of how the administration would implement changes at such a vast scale.

“There are some good steps taken, like in solid waste management rules the government has clearly demarcated roles and their plan to integrate rag pickers would help decentralisation. But there are some bad decisions as well, like mandating segregation of dry, wet and hazardous waste without a concrete roadmap. Before we can achieve that, it is essential to bring about behavioural change through awareness. Who will do that ”, asked Ms Bharti Chaturvedi, founder and director of Chintan, an environment research and action group.

A ministry source said that since the notification of new rules in March, the environment ministry has already written to the state governments to start the implementation process. However, the response has been mundane, prompting them to convene a meeting. Besides, absence of any clear penal provisions for violations adds to the problem of inadequate execution. The local municipal bodies have been arbitrarily asked to decide the amounts to be levied on offenders, the source added.

Deciphering on the new possible methods to ensure collection of another emerging major source of pollution — e-waste — through possible mechanisms like buy back, deposit refund schemes, e-waste exchange, e-retailer etc, a senior environment ministry official explained: “Suppose we take the example of Apple phones which are sold in several hundreds. Through new rules, we can ensure collection. If only 30 per cent of the wasted e-waste could be processed through proper channels, the situation will improve drastically”. Ms Bharti said: “The extended producers’ responsibility is a good step and it can be done. For instance, in case of e-waste manufacturers like Apple or Samsung or any other, the waste can be collected back with the help of NGOs. Financial assistance should be sought through CSR”. Similarly, on plastic waste, she added: “The brands which we are talking about are big ones like Pepsi Co and Britannia. They should be able to ensure that the plastic generated from their products is brought back”.

The management of construction and demolition waste is another challenge the government has acknowledged for the first time. “Every year 530 million tonnes of this waste is generated. Therefore we have decided, among other things, to clear new housing projects only when the applicant submits a plan ensuring collection, transportation and disposal of waste”, the environment minister Prakash Javadekar said, adding, “It has also been made compulsory to cover the construction site to ensure that no dust billows out during the work”.

While the job of identifying and allocating suitable land for setting up processing and disposal facilities for various waste after proper coordination rests with the Centre, some of the duties assigned to the local authorities and panchayats include preparation of waste management plans, arrange for collection of segregated waste, prescribe user fee wherever applicable. However, as experts point out the task is not easily achievable. “It is a little complicated to put things in place but industries like plastic have to be pressurised by the government to adhere to rules like EPR”, added Ms Bharti.

“The disposal of waste to landfill sites is another concern that has not been addressed properly while formulating new laws. The concerns like what will happen to existing overused landfills which are major cause of pollution and what is the exact plan of action to allocate new ones must be shed some light upon”, added another expert.

FOR GRAPHICS Total waste generated every year in India – 62 million tonnes Plastic waste – 5.6 million tonnes E-waste – 15 lakh million tonnes Hazardous waste – 7.90 million tonnes Biomedical – 0.17 million tonnes Annual Construction and Demolition waste generation alone – 530 million tonnes Per capita waste generation ranges from 200 gram to 600 gram per day Total waste collected per annum is 43 million tonnes out of which only 11.9 million tonnes is treated while 31 million is dumped in landfill sites Out of 75-80 per cent of municipal waste that gets collected only 22-28 per cent is processed and treated According to environment ministry estimates waste generation is expected to rise from 62 million tonnes to about 165 million tonnes by 2030 and 436 million tonnes by 2050 Only 552 compost plants, 56 bio-methanation plants, 22 RDF plants, 13 waste to energy plants as per CPCB (2013-14) As per planning commission task force report, untapped waste can generate 439 MW of power. Except solid waste management rules, which were changed after 16 years in 2016, new acts for all other waste categories replaced existing Waste (Management and Holding) rules of 2011. Some standout changes Segregate solid waste at source by separating it in three parts – wet (bio-degradable), dry (plastic, paper, metal, wood etc.) and hazardous (sanitary napkins, diapers etc) Imposing user fee for waste collection and spot fine for littering Mandating bulk producers (markets, events, etc) to ensure collection to hold producers responsible to collect back all waste generated from their productspermission for new constructions and demolitions (C&D) to be given only when a plan for waste management is submitted large generators of C&D waste to pay charges for proper disposal Ambit of new regulations extended beyond municipal areas, to urban agglomerations, census towns, industrial townships, airports, ports, defence establishments, SEZs, places of pilgrimage, religious and historical places etc in case of solid waste The new plastic waste rules would cover all villages Shopkeepers providing plastic bags should register themselves and pay Rs 4,000 per month to the government The thickness of plastic increased from 40 micron to 50 micron