Waste to Wealth

The volume of waste is projected to rise from the present 62 million tonnes to about 150 million tonnes by 2030. Indiscriminate dumping of garbage at the current rate without appropriate scientific treatment would impose huge requirement of landfill area per year.

Impact of Waste

• Air pollution from landfills;
• Health hazards;;
• Affecting ecosystem services;
• Soil contamination and pollution;
• Surface and groundwater pollution; and
• Affecting marine or terrestrial bio life.

Government Initiatives

Solid Waste Disposal

• Solid Waste treatment and disposal utilizing plasma arc gasification process is an option for eco-friendly solid waste management in which large volume reduction of waste up to 95% is possible.
• The plasma gasification process uses electricity to generate high temperature plasma arc (above 3000°C) inside the plasma reactor which converts the waste into syngas.
• The produced syngas when passed through a series of gas purification system comprising of catalytic converter, redox reactor, cyclone separator, scrubber and condenser is ready for use in gas engines for generation of electricity.

Biomass Waste Disposal

• Biomass waste such as dry leaves, dead branches, dry grass etc. are disposed of by first shredding it to suitable size followed by mixing with the slurry of the biogas digester. This mixture is feedstock for briquette, which is utilized as fuel for cooking.
• These briquettes are also being utilized in gasifier for production of syngas which can be utilized in gas engine for generation of electricity.

Polymer Waste Disposal

• The polymer waste consisting of plastics, sanitary waste etc. is being disposed of through two main processes i.e. pyrolysis and plasma gasification.
• In the pyrolysis process, the polymer waste is heated to a temperature of 400 – 600°C in an anaerobic environment in presence of suitable catalyst.

Sanitary Waste Disposal

• The sanitary items including masks, sanitary napkins, diapers etc. are disposed-off utilizing high temperature plasma.
• The MSW facility is equipped with special disinfection capabilities to help break the COVID Chain through UV-C Lights and Hot-Air Convection methods.