Environmentally Sound and Productive use of City Garbage in Bangalore India-Best Practice

A Presentation By: Vivek Agnihotri (13AR60R17)

About City & Its Garbage:• From a small Pensioners’ Paradise to Sprawling Metropolis• Capital of Karnataka• Total Urban Area - 741 Sq. Km• Total Urban Population - 8,425,970• Waste Generated per day - 2500 tons• Waste Collected per day - 1400 tons• Per capita Waste Generated per day - 425 grams

Source: State of Environment Report-2003

• Nos of Dumpsites : 02• Area of Dumpsites : 10 Acres• Distance from city : 12 km• Period of usage : 27 years• Existing Composting plant : Yes• Existing Landfill Site: Yes (But Encroached)• Project Initiated : 1998• Project First Implemented : 2002

Initiative:• From Garden City to Garbage City

• Liquid waste was the major problem

• Lack of space for garbage disposal and other activities such as composting.

• Government Officers & NGOs took lead

• Lack of willingness to pay for rag pickers

• Mind-set of people was yet another problem• Garbage handling is government’s job.• Their job is only to pay taxes.• Rag Pickers are thieves.• Separation of garbage even inside homes is against dignity.

Preparing Information• Trainings were held for:

• Stakeholder-Citizens• Corporation• NGOs• Rag Pickers

• During trainings it was explained that if they themselves do not address the problems of garbage management then the problem will assume proportions which will affect their as well as their children’s health and might become cause for various serious illnesses.

• Community level workshops and meetings were arranged in which films and educational videos were shown to people apart from it various informations were distributed in form of:

• Leaflets• Pamphlets• Posters• Booklets

Clarifying Prioritization:

• Top most priority was to bring citizens and rag pickers closer to each other and dissolve the differences between them.

• City corporation made to realise citizen as well as rag pickers the importance of the project.

• Through the Horticultural wing of the Corporation, provisions of help in maintaining the composting sites and guard it from vandalism were finalized.

• Reformation of priorities was through education, motivation, through meetings and literature. Journalists played a very important role in spreading information of the success of the method through articles, TV programmes etc.

• Priorities were set on the basis of achieving maximum participation from the citizens, involving them in planning, in motivating others and in executing the project through citizens' committees, which left the following points to start the project:

• Separation of waste at source,• Collection of Segregated garbage and service charges,• Disbursement of salaries,• Monitoring and maintenance of composting site,• Tricycles were to be done by citizens’ committees,

Objectives:

• To make people aware that garbage utilization was a better method of management than garbage disposal.

• To make people aware that there were several poor people such as rag pickers who made a living by selling recycling from garbage. This was unhygienic for them as well as us since they would get hurt by the sharps in the garbage.

• To make the people realise the importance of segregating garbage at source in their homes, offices, schools and institutions, because if the recycled items are made from items picked from garbage, would be contaminated and hence spread diseases to everybody in the community.

• To provide employment opportunities through scientific management of the project so that the compost that is made is of high quality and the proceeds of the sale of the compost as well as the recycling can be used for enhancing the incomes of the waste retrievers.

• To bring about a change in the attitudes of the people towards their environment, about others less fortunate members of the community and to work together positively for a better common future.

Strategies:

• Preparation of educational material: videos, posters and pamphlets distributed free of cost

• Commercial broadcasting Service (CBS): A radio serial was broadcast over All India Radio for several weeks for making people aware of the urban issues and the need to address them.

• Help from Experienced NGOs: Rag pickers who were trained for collection, transportation, composting and sale of items including recycling and compost made from organic matter.

• Permission was sought from the Corporation to use the land in the parks for composting and lined composting pits with lid, roof etc. were built on the land. The lined battery of pits are in a series of four to six are shallow for easy turning and the roofs prevent entry of water during rainy season.

• Professors’ Classes: To convince them that aerobic composting and vermicomposting (use of earthworms for composting) are safe methods of composting and can be done in parks as well as homes, institutions etc.

Strategies:

• Sponsorship: For tricycles got from banks, shops and service associations for transporting the segregated waste and for later selling the compost to the local citizens as well as outsiders.

• Awareness: Schools, hospitals, restaurants and other institutions were made aware of this project and the importance of segregating soiled (blood and body fluid soaked and stained) and toxic waste from wet and dry waste to prevent contamination.

• 'Swabhimana’: To bring together BCC and many NGOs and individuals interested in working on civic amenities.

• Compost produced was used for growth of plants and trees in the city.

• Emphasis was on cleanliness inside and outside the house and people were motivated through success stories in different parts of the city and the country.

Mobilization of Resources:

• Political: Meeting local councillors, Mayor, Deputy Mayor, Commissioner, Deputy Commissioners and explaining to them the importance of the project for both the citizens as well as the City Corporation. Their support was invaluable in form of-

• Motivating citizens towards the program,• Sustaining their interests,• Obtaining permissions from the authorities,• Imposing of service charges on residents.

• Financial: NORAD (Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation). Initially state government invested the development cost. In the first few months of every project until the people were convinced and paid the service charges expenditure was made through NORAD funding. Tricycles, buckets and gardening equipment were sponsored by some philanthropic organisations and banks.

• Administrative: CEE imposed AIMPWUD ((An Integrated Management Plan for Waste Utilisation and Disposal).

• Social: Initially, it was CEE who assumed the leadership roles in implementing the initiative along with a few motivated citizens in each pilot project area Later, once the citizens' committees were formed and the Swabhimana became active, the citizens and in some cases the members of the City Corporation assumed leadership roles in implementing the projects.

Problems & Solutions:Problems Faced:Major problems faced during executions were majorly related to social issues. These problems include:

• Apathy and lack of interest amongst citizens towards managing their environment.

• Lack of participation and initiative on the part of citizens to take responsibilities.

• The inordinate delay in getting permission from the Corporation for composting in the parks.

• Getting people to segregate their waste and giving it to the waste retrievers.

• Collecting service charges from the residents.

Actions Taken:• Door to door campaigning and by explaining to the citizens, the importance of environmental management.

• Educational material made by CEE such as posters, pamphlets, films, multimedia etc. helped to explain to the citizens, the importance of segregation, composting etc.

• Plays, songs and role plays done by children helped to create interest in the project.

Current Scenario:

• Segregation is now over 40% and many citizens have come forward to take up responsibilities.

• Public apathy still remains as a major problem although it is being slowly overcome

• The cleanliness levels achieved by many areas.

• Officials of BCC have become sensitised through training, motivation etc. and the time required for obtaining permission for use of parks has been considerably reduced.

• Earlier, there was no space to store the equipment and park the tricycles while now the BCC ward offices have been given to the Swabhimana groups in each ward for conducting meetings, literacy classes, training programmes and space has been given for storing the equipment and compost.

• A marketing campaign was done for the sale of compost, sometimes there is a glut but most often the compost is sold to nurseries, landscape planners and organic farmers.

• The problem of lack of motivation amongst citizens to take up such projects and run them efficiently, still remains.

Results Achieved:• Formation of the 'Swabhimana' core committee consisting of BCC officials and NGOs at the city level for coordination of such

activities was the biggest and most unexpected outcomes of the project.

Quantitative Results:

• The number of projects set up in the first phase and in the subsequent phases increased.

• Number of houses participating in each of the projects increased by 40%.

• Number of rag pickers employed as waste retrievers, and of those the number who completed the literacy programme got employment increased.

• Percentage of conversion and efficiency increased.

• Efficiency of collection of waste from door to door when waste is segregated as against unsegregated waste was also increased.

• The amount of compost sold and the economic viability of the project could also be quantitatively calculated and found in improving form.

Results Achieved:

Qualitative Results:

• Cleanliness in the project area increased.

• Social stigma attached to working with garbage and the invisible barrier between the rag pickers and the residents who had earlier eyed each other suspiciously, slowly began to disappear.

• Improvement in the condition of the parks as a result of more compost available and people in the houses took up gardening.

• Various projects and activities were conducted in schools encouraging children to do small projects related to the environment. Environmental education in schools and colleges became a meaningful activity.

Major Impacts:

Local Level:

• Changed the attitudes of decision makers towards decentralised management and self help projects run by the people.

• Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) has made Centre for Environment Education (CEE) its partner in planning the solid waste management infrastructure in four new layouts in the city.

• BDA amended its bylaws to include mandatory regulations by which any builder or planner can get approval for their building only if the provision for management of solid wastes is shown in the plan.

• The BCC too has made it mandatory for every area to have a citizens committee under the 74th amendment, which would also monitor the solid waste management in each area/ ward.

Major Impacts:National Level:

• Many city corporations are requesting the State and Central Governments for funds for making door to door collection mandatory.

• Decentralisation and privatisation of solid waste management is being recommended by all State Governments.

• The Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Environment and Forests have recommended decentralised and environmentally sound technologies such as segregation and composting for solid waste and hospital waste management.

• Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has organised several seminars encouraging segregation, composting etc. and has brought forth the Minimum National Standards (MINAS) for solid waste management in the country.

• The Ministry of Environment has started finalising the Biomedical waste regulations on the basis of there commendations from several NGOs.

Sustainability:• Social Sustainability: The project is symbiotic, since the waste retrievers help the residents as well as the BCC. In return they

receive a steady income from the amount paid by each household for waste collection and management.

• Economical Sustainability: By insisting upon the household to segregate garbage at source into wet and dry and to keep soiled and toxic substances such as blood stained cotton, bandages, syringes etc. and paints, tube lights etc. from either the dry or wet waste. It was determined that if the segregation is good say up to 40% or more, then one waste retriever is able to pick up waste from 100 houses in about two hours. A minimum of Rs. 10 at least is collected per month from each household. Even if10% of this goes towards maintenance, the waste retriever will get a reasonable salary.

Sustainability:• Cultural Sustainability: Reuse of containers, bags etc. Segregate newspapers, bottles, containers etc. to be sold to itinerant

waste buyers. Apart from it composting is a common activity in the rural areas; therefore that idea too is not very different from what they are used to.

• Environmental Sustainability:• Cost recovery was employed through collection of service charges from residents on a monthly basis and by sale of

compost. Some of the compost is sold to the residents at half price and some given free of cost to the horticultural department of the Corporation.

• The compost is also being tested in a farm for growing indigenous species of fruits and vegetables. The results of the experiments are being used for marketing the compost and making it more useful for a range of horticultural crops by blending it with only organic products thus encouraging organic farming.

• Profits earned from such sales is saved and used for various programmes such as literacy, vocational training, entertainment, medical check up, uniforms etc.

• Thus most projects become self sufficient in a period of two to three years. If, however, as in the case of Mangalore, many towns of Coorg, the district administration pays for the construction of composting pits, then the project become self sufficient in three to six months.

Learnings:

• Proper consultations should be had with all the stakeholders.

• Their needs and requirements should be incorporated into the design of the project.

• Environmental soundness of the project should be well integrated into the economic sustainability of the project

• Concepts and actions should be simple to understand and execute. Projects should not be culturally alienated from the general beliefs of the people.

• That when a programme is designed well and training imparted to the various persons, one needs only to ensure quality of service and proper maintenance of the project area.

• A systematic approach and consistency in working is must.

• Scientific processes and management should not be taken lightly even if it seems simple and uncomplicated.

• Cleanliness and neatness of work and documentation are important factors that help in success of the project.

Learnings:

• Apart from these learnings major lessons received through the programme were:

• Before undertaking any programme, one must first study the socioeconomic, cultural and environmental situation. Only then a strategy based on community needs and aspirations should be planned.

• That implementation is dependent on working out a plan with details of how one is going to communicate. The process is never smooth as it is not possible to anticipate all the difficulties that will arise in working with communities.

• It is necessary therefore to review the processes and adjust the methodologies to suit each situation. Evaluation should be simple and feed back into the process.

`

Take Lead Committee Formation Training by Expert Strategy Finalization Area Identification

Local Rag Picker Rag Pickers’ Training Local Interaction Local Committee FormationSpace Identification

Authority Approval Garbage Collection Compost Sell Compost Income

Model Process:

To address

the problem

either

govt. officials

or social

activists should

come out

A C

omm

ittee to

be form

ed including Tow

n planner, Envi.

Planner, C

ivil Engg &

NG

Os

NG

Os doing such kind of things or

Specialized

Professors

to be

invited for training the comm

ittee m

embers.

Priorities to be set up, action plan to

be made, goals and objectives to be

finalized

An area to be identified for doing the pilot

project.

Identification and recruitment of rag pickers

from

the local

area, w

ho all

are already

involved in such kind of activities.

NG

Os

appointed and

trained earlier

will

train these

rag pickers,

various incentives

to be

provided to

rag pickers

to increase

their enthusiasm

towards the

project such as food,

clothes, medical facilities, etc.

After training of rag pickers these rag pickers w

ill join N

GO

people and go door to door to explain the hazardous conditions if the action is not taken in earlier stages and distribute aw

areness materials.

Am

ongst the local residents, few eligible residents w

ill be elected and a local com

mittee to be form

ed to look after the project at grass root level.

Local comm

ittee along with expert com

mittee w

ill identify the possible site for com

posting of garbage. These spaces will

either parks or some abandoned ground/areas.

Once local site is identified approval of authority for construction

nominal infrastructure such as com

posting chamber, store room

w

ill be taken. Meanw

hile funds will also be fetched for the initial

investment in the projects such as try cycles, constructions, etc.

Once all the background activities are done door to door garbage

collection is started, but before collection once again it will be m

ade sure that the garbage is segregated at the origin point itself by the ow

ners.

Start

the process

of com

posting, w

hatever be

the w

ay such

as, verm

icomposting or pot com

posting.

Once

the production

of com

posting is

begun, start

the m

arketing of

compost.

This com

post could

be sold

to H

orticulture D

epartment,

Landscape Planner, N

urseries or even to the individual households.

Income generated through the selling of the com

post will help in paym

ent of the

salaries of

the rag

pickers, refunding

of the

loans taken

for initial

investment, purchasing new

equipment and finally for starting som

e new

projects.

Change in Society:

Success Story- “From Waste Picker to Recycle manager”“Earlier the police would pick us up and often insult us because of the work we did. Now we have uniforms and badges given by the civic body so no one bothers us unnecessarily. We even got some person to make a down payment for a vehicle for us and we now collect waste in it and send it for treatment,” explains 38 years old Krishna who is associated with Swabhimana and works at one such waste collection centre”

References:

• mirror.unhabitat.org (united Habitat Best Practice Awards);

• Satyamev Jayate; Season 2: Episode-3, Solid Rules For Effective Waste Management;

• State of the Environment Report-2003;

• Solid Waste Management In Bangalore City, Challenges And Possibilities