WASTE SEGREGATION
Waste segregation refers to the separation of dry and wet waste that enables further processing of waste like composting and recycling. Its ultimate goal is to reduce waste from landfills and prevent land, water, and air pollution.
Why should the garbage be segregated?
India generates 62 million tonnes (MT) of waste every year, and only 43 MT is collected. Of the collected waste, close to 31 MT is dumped at landfill sites or water bodies, and only 11.9 MT is scientifically treated.
As a result, our landfills are teeming with so much urban waste that India needs a New Delhi size landfill by 2050, according to a joint report by ASSOCHAM and accounting firm PwC.
The first and foremost step to change this hazardous predicament is to segregate the waste so that it can be treated scientifically at the source.
Here are 8 ways to segregate the waste at the household level:
1. Wet / Kitchen Waste
This includes fruit peels, leftovers, vegetable skins, uncooked food, coffee or tea powder, and garden waste such as leaves and twigs.
Maintain a drum, container, or bin to store such waste, so that it can be converted into rich organic manure. You can choose your composting process. Examples include vermicomposting, aerobic, and anaerobic composting.
2. Dry waste
Dry waste is divided into recyclable and non-recyclable waste. Items such as used paper towels, hazardous chemicals or food containers, foam materials, and dishware are some examples of dry waste that cannot be recycled or reused.
Dry waste which can be easily recycled includes pet bottles, plastic carry bags, newspapers, glass bottles, shoes, plastic cutlery, tires, cardboard, etc.
If recyclable waste is segregated properly you can get some money from online scrap dealers, local scrap dealers, recycling centers, raddiwalas, municipal corporations.
Since dry waste accounts for 30-40% of total household waste, maintain a recyclable bin and give it away once or twice a week.
3. Sanitary Waste
Diapers (adults and children), synthetic sanitary napkins, hygiene products, condoms, tampons, dirty napkins are classified as sanitary waste. Medical waste includes linens, bedding, items contaminated with blood or body fluids, dirty plaster cans, and other types of dressings.
Medical and sanitary waste is incinerated, microwaved, or autoclaved to avoid the spread of diseases by companies dealing with hazardous waste.
Since not every city or village in India is equipped with facilities to treat waste scientifically, the best way to dispose of them is to wrap them in a newspaper and mark it with a red dot for easy identification.
4. E-Waste
There are three types of electronic waste that you should be aware of:
Bulky: Fridge, microwave or anything else that's hard to carry around.
Hazardous: Tubelights, light bulbs, toner cartridges, batteries, monitors, and screens. Anything with a chemical component.
Non-hazardous: Gadgets such as cables, chargers, microwaves, laptops, and phones.
Collect all the e-waste in one container, and you can follow a weekly, monthly, or yearly disposal process.
Like dry waste, there are many public e-waste drop-off points, online collection services, recycling centers where you can donate or trade your electronic waste.
5. Biomedical Waste
This includes menstrual clothing, sanitary napkins, disposable diapers, bandages, and any material contaminated with blood or other body fluids. They should be wrapped in a newspaper, marked with a red cross, and thrown in a garbage cart or garbage receptacles kept by the municipality.
Used waxing strips are sanitary waste - they should be wrapped in a newspaper, marked with a red cross, and thrown in garbage containers kept by the municipality.
6. Hazardous Waste
HHW (Household Hazardous) or household hazardous waste includes three sub-categories – e-waste; Toxic substances such as paints, cleaning agents, solvents, pesticides and their containers, other chemicals; and biomedical waste such as syringes, expired medicines, thermometers, used cosmetics, etc.
Expired medicines and injections, used syringes fall under HHW or household hazardous waste. They should be stored separately from other categories of waste and thrown into garbage containers once every quarter.
Written by – Anjali Kumari
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