The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Chennai is running short of dumping space

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Feb 06, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Chennai is running short of dumping space

City Bureau

Consumerism and `throwaway culture' make foolproof waste management systems the need of the hour

CHENNAI : Imagine that your house has two large garbage bins into which you routinely dump waste. Let's say that you cannot empty the bins out if they become full. Would you let the stinking, unsafe garbage spill over into the home or would you think of ways to keep the trashcans from filling up?

Consider Chennai as one large household with 42.16 lakh people. The solid waste generated daily — a whopping 3,225 tonnes — ends up in dumping yards in Kodungaiyur and Perungudi. This is excluding 400 tonnes of construction debris generated daily. The city is running out of dumping space, and fast.

In the wake of the Government's recent decision to continue with privatised garbage clearance in three zones and introduce private participation in a fourth, the City Pulse team examines the issues related to solid waste management in the city.

According to the Chennai Corporation's estimates, the capacity of the dumping yards will be exhausted in about eight years. The need to put waste management systems into place is more urgent now than ever, with the growth of consumerism and the `throwaway' culture.

A study by Eco Save Systems, an agency commissioned by the Corporation for research, said that non-compostable waste such as plastic has increased from 10 per cent to as much as 30 per cent of the total garbage in recent years.

Official standpoint

The Corporation had initiated a source segregation project with composting of biodegradable waste two years ago. Erratic efforts, residents' non-compliance and the lack of infrastructure to compost enormous quantities of waste obstructed the project from taking off. The latest project from the Corporation, civic agency in charge of managing solid waste, involves harnessing funds from the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. The Rs. 400-crore project aims to equip Kodungaiyur and Perungudi dumping yards with facilities to manufacture compost, fuel pellets and electricity from garbage.

The State Government has said that Municipal Solid Waste Rules — which stipulate segregation and processing — would be adhered to when calling for international bids for private garbage clearance in Ice House, Kodambakkam, Adyar and Pulianthope zones.

The three Rs

End-of-the-pipe solutions will not be able to fully address the problem of waste management, said G. Dattatri, former chief urban planner at the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority. The principle of `Reduce, Reuse and Recycle' is at the core of any waste management system, he said.

A consumer can take a cloth bag to shop rather than accept plastic carrybags and buy products that use less wrapping.

The simple act of salvaging one-side used paper for reuse can save trees and money. Cutting down on use of Styrofoam plates and cups in parties, giving away old plastic to recycle and carrying a water bottle rather than buying a PET bottle may consume time and effort but goes a long way to reduce waste.

The Corporation could also initiate a dialogue with rag-pickers and recyclers, who play an informal but significant role in waste management. "By providing safety equipment such as masks and gloves, the Corporation can protect the health of rag-pickers who sort garbage. It can be a win-win situation," said Mr. Dattatri.

Tough challenges

The problem of e-waste is an emerging one for Chennai, said Chirantana Kar, Chennai coordinator for Toxics Links, an advocacy group on pollution and waste.

Junk piles of computer peripherals, cell phones, CDs and electronic goods spares become bigger every day. The State had set up an e-waste committee with representatives from government and non-governmental organisations but little has been done to find solutions, she said.

Bio-medical waste, toxic waste and non-biodegradable waste are tough challenges for the local Government. Waste management needs immediate attention as arbitrary disposal of garbage could take a toll on the quality of land and water and burning would only pollute air.

Chennai — the Corporation, private players and the public — needs to make concerted efforts to put its house in order.

(Contributions from Kannal Achuthan, J. Malarvizhi and Swahilya)

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