Solid Waste Management Analysis Essay Example

communities and disposing it at three main dumping sites currently serving the city.

The process of waste collection in households is carried out manually by garbage collectors employed by various housing societies. The collected waste is then dumped into designated community bins that are distributed throughout the city, with approximately 5,800 bins in total. In South Mumbai, garbage trucks transport the waste from these community bins to a transfer station located in Mahalakshmi. From there, a separate transport system carries the garbage to dumping grounds located in the north of Mumbai. For other areas of the city, waste is directly sent to the dumping sites. This method of disposal handles almost 95% of all waste generated within the city.

To collect and transport garbage and debris, MCGM operates a fleet of 800 vehicles, including those from private contractors. The vehicles operate on a shift basis and make about 2,000 trips per day at an estimated cost of RSI 5-201akh daily. Mumbai has three dumping grounds located in the northern part of the city at Goral (Borivali), Mulund, and Deonar. These low-lying, marshy areas situated on the outskirts of the city have no human population. Among these, Deonar is the largest while a fourth dumping ground at Chincholi has recently been closed.

The high transportation costs for dumping is due to the fact that all the dumping sites are located approximately 30-40km away from South Mumbai. The city's population growth has resulted in people settling near the dumping grounds, which has led to both health-related issues and protests for their closure. These problems stem from the health hazards caused by the dumping, which puts those living nearby

in unhealthy conditions. The lifespan of a typical dumping ground is around 30 years.

The Deonar dumping ground, which is our largest, has only five to six years of life remaining with no alternative site for waste disposal identified yet. The rag pickers sell the waste, including paper and metal, to informal dealers for a profit.

However, a large amount of organic waste, including old batteries, polystyrene (thermocol), polythene bags, debris, and more, lack incentives for proper disposal and exist in significant quantities. Due to the slow rate of decomposition, these types of waste often occupy and fill low-lying areas once dumped. Typically, authorities only begin seeking a new dumping ground once the current filling area is completely used up. Essentially, the lifespan of a dumping ground is directly related to the amount of waste deposited - the less waste, the longer it will last.

The waste at the dumping ground is evenly covered with debris and composed of organic waste, which generates harmful leachate fluid if proper treatment is not administered. Leachate intrusion into the soil could lead to ground water pollution and serve as a breeding ground for various pests, including flies and mosquitoes, causing public health hazards. In Mumbai, 2,000 tonnes of debris are officially generated daily, with some portions designated for spreading over organic garbage due to the costly nature of earth. The remaining debris is disposed of on open grounds, next to roads, creeks, and railway tracks.

Every day, renovation work somewhere generates debris, whether from repairing buildings or demolishing old ones for reconstruction. This waste can come from houses or shops, and even a simple repair to a 20-story building can produce

close to 200 truckloads of debris. Fortunately, this waste can be used to fill low-lying areas without requiring any permission from authorities. Housing societies oversee these repairs and renovations, so no data is available on them. However, the Corporation does require the areas where work has occurred to be cleaned up and cleared of all waste after completion.

Truckers make a living by collecting and transporting debris for disposal, but it is still difficult to dispose of properly in Mumbai due to limited space. The high cost of long-distance transportation makes the entire process unprofitable, leading to clandestine dumping in creeks and damaging valuable mangroves along Mumbai's 603 sq. coastal stretch.

The vast expanse of km has an abundance of creeks that occupy marshy land during high tide and drain off during low tide. These channels of water are enriched with salty water and are responsible for nurturing mangroves. The leaves of these plants supply oxygen to the water and facilitate breeding grounds for fishes in the creeks.

The dump of waste in areas such as Versova, Goral, Charkop and Mankhurd has resulted in the destruction of the creek's entire eco-system. Due to skyrocketing land costs and heightened construction activities, there has been an increased requirement to demolish old structures and construct new ones, leading to a rise in bulky debris waste. This, in turn, requires greater space, reducing the longevity of dumping grounds. As a result, municipalities usually reject debris from getting dumped—apart from what is necessary to conceal garbage.

Due to few viable alternatives, debris is often dumped by roadsides leading people to pile organic waste on top of it, exacerbating the waste disposal

problem and creating a health hazard. Garbage collection activities vary by locality, including highly-serviced areas, medium-serviced areas, and very low-serviced areas, such as slums. Unfortunately, slums are not viewed as deserving of formal solid waste management systems like regularised slums declared official or recognised under the census of slums. This neglect is a grave mistake by the city since slums make up 60% of Mumbai.

Furthermore, the division lines created by these artificial boundaries are insufficient to halt the transmission of filth and illness. The 1998 survey conducted by Youth for Unity and Voluntary Action (YUVA), which encompassed 100 slum communities in the Jogeshwari (East) vicinity, revealed that though inhabitants acknowledged the issues related to improper household refuse disposal and garbage collection and transport systems within their community, there was minimal active collaboration by the community to resolve the problem. The time it takes for waste to decompose also becomes a pressing hazard to both the environment and human health, as the waste dumped doesn't decompose rapidly, creating an obstacle for other waste disposal. A list of times for different types of waste decomposition is provided below: