The prosperity and wellbeing of a nation depends on its waste management system and hygiene ensuring practices.
Regrettably, the authorities in most of the low- and middle-income countries are following an un-ethical and inappropriate transport-oriented approach. Garbage is picked up from one place and carelessly thrown away at another location without following any necessary procedures. This is the reason we see loads of filthy waste heaps at doorsteps, in streets, walkways, open spaces, markets and even recreational places. The designated waste dumping sites are filled to their capacity.
Pakistan produced more than 80,000 tonnes of solid waste every day with an extremely poor waste management services. As per international standards we are not operating any sanitary landfill facility in the country. Waste collection and transport alone constitute more than 70 percent of the total waste management costs, whereas land cost is also exceptionally huge in the urban settlements.
The waste management authorities in Pakistan have been unable to reform the outdated system. We are neither investing in public awareness nor educating and training waste management authorities to ease the process of decision-making and implementation of a feasible waste system in the country.
Prioritising actions with dedicated purposes in waste management hierarchy is key to resource sustainability and economic stability. Before incorporating the technical measures, we need to change our lives and mindsets towards consumption. This requires a shift from linear ‘take-make-waste’ model to the concept of resource circularity by taking actions at all levels of society.
Waste minimisation is the first step, which includes a minimalistic or realistic consumption approach that prevents waste production by monitoring daily life activities and businesses. It means that waste management in Pakistan should start from our homes and businesses. However, resource circularity can only be ensured by implementing proper waste segregation at or closer to the source along with suitable waste collection plans. Once waste is dumped in mixed form, nothing much can be done because waste segregation or sorting at disposal sites is labour intensive, time consuming, and requires expensive machinery. It also results in poor quality of sorted material. Waste loses its economic potential in mixed form as different waste components contaminate each other, and their recycling value is seriously compromised.
Sorting and separately collecting different waste components like organics, recyclables, and non-recyclables near the point of production can capture value in waste. Each waste type can be utilised to its full potential – and can be repaired, reused, recycled, remanufactured, and refurbished, making it sustainable and a valuable component of economy with a maximized functionality.
Recycling businesses would never intervene if clean and desirable waste component is not available in continuity and abundance. People would not adopt waste segregation as a habit if there is no socio-economic benefit. Local and municipal governments and private sectors responsible for ensuring efficient waste management in the country should design and implement behaviour change interventions that could encourage waste minimisation and waste segregation at both household and non-household level.
One such measure could be incentivising and penalising doers and non-doers respectively. This can be done through legal reforms. Encouraging a group of people showing responsible gesture towards environment and cleanliness through social and television media along with personal interview sessions is one successful behaviour change intervention.
In this way we could know how they are managing waste and what challenges they are facing to address them in a better way. Participating houses, commercial entities, governments and educational institutes can be provided symbolic flags to host at their premises. This would distinguish them and may act as tool for awareness raising and incentive for non-doers.
According to a recent research reported in SANDEC news 2022: Department of Sanitation, Water and Solid Waste, the application of a systematic behaviour change approach in a region of Guatemala at the household level known as RANAS (Risk, Attitude, Norm, Ability and Self-regulation) resulted in enhanced waste segregation practice from 17 to 75 percent within just six months.
Organic waste constitutes 50-70 percent of municipal solid waste in Pakistan. It is composed of food waste produced from households’ kitchen activities, restaurants, and markets. It is an important nutrient source that can promote soil health, plant growth and also act as healthy food for animals. We can imagine how big the impact can be if every citizen of Pakistan can manage to prevent the organic waste component from ending up at dump sites. This major proportion of waste would be recycled back into nature becoming part of economy, saving land and huge costs involved in its collection and transport.
This necessary step could significantly improve the health and wellbeing of the society. The remaining 30 percent that consists of potential recyclables is already picked up by waste pickers in the informal sector and is sold in the market. Sadly, the role of waste pickers is not acknowledged in the country.
Unfortunately, they are known as ‘waste pickers’, while they should be named as ‘waste eliminators’ or ‘circularity enablers’. They are the backbone of a waste management hierarchy in Pakistan and play a major role in diverting a huge waste burden from dumpsites and flourishing our recycling industry.
Another commonly practiced solution in many parts of the world is of waste banks or more familiarly known as ‘kabaar khaana’ in Pakistan. Waste bank is a place meant for waste collection and segregating the waste components that have some monetary value and can be sold to recycling agents or directly to factories. Unfortunately, this concept in Pakistan is not well-recognized for its usefulness and is not integrated into the formal waste management system.
Indonesia has done an amazing job in systemising and integrating the concept of waste banks into their mainstream waste management system. It is interesting to know that they started this campaign in 2004 through targeted approach and trained 45 local housewives in Surabaya. They acted as volunteer ‘Agents of Change’ and played significant role in educating dozens of households about the importance of waste segregation at source and recycling practices. In a time period of just two years, with the help of 90 percent of household participation, they have been successful to channel about 70 percent of the municipal waste (including organic waste) away from landfills towards waste banks.
There was a massive increase in the total number of waste banks in Indonesia from 1,172 in 2014 to 11,330 in year 2020. The 3Rs – reduce, recycle and reuse – through waste banks implemented in Indonesia under the the Ministry of Environment Regulation No. 13 of 2012, and Waste Bank Program to Support Clean-from Waste 2025. The efforts of local government, local community and private sector are highly appreciated and needs to be followed. Along with systemisation of waste banking concept in Pakistan, it is also important to introduce and implement the practice of ‘organic waste banks’ so that one could rethink recycling value of an underutilised resource.
In India’s Tamil Nadu, there are more than 700 small composting plants to cater separately collected organic waste. Only decentralised waste management approach and inclusive mindset of both government and public can secure and revitalise the existing waste management system.
Regrettably, the authorities in most of the low- and middle-income countries are following an un-ethical and inappropriate transport-oriented approach. Garbage is picked up from one place and carelessly thrown away at another location without following any necessary procedures. This is the reason we see loads of filthy waste heaps at doorsteps, in streets, walkways, open spaces, markets and even recreational places. The designated waste dumping sites are filled to their capacity.
Pakistan produced more than 80,000 tonnes of solid waste every day with an extremely poor waste management services. As per international standards we are not operating any sanitary landfill facility in the country. Waste collection and transport alone constitute more than 70 percent of the total waste management costs, whereas land cost is also exceptionally huge in the urban settlements.
The waste management authorities in Pakistan have been unable to reform the outdated system. We are neither investing in public awareness nor educating and training waste management authorities to ease the process of decision-making and implementation of a feasible waste system in the country.
Prioritising actions with dedicated purposes in waste management hierarchy is key to resource sustainability and economic stability. Before incorporating the technical measures, we need to change our lives and mindsets towards consumption. This requires a shift from linear ‘take-make-waste’ model to the concept of resource circularity by taking actions at all levels of society.
Waste minimisation is the first step, which includes a minimalistic or realistic consumption approach that prevents waste production by monitoring daily life activities and businesses. It means that waste management in Pakistan should start from our homes and businesses. However, resource circularity can only be ensured by implementing proper waste segregation at or closer to the source along with suitable waste collection plans. Once waste is dumped in mixed form, nothing much can be done because waste segregation or sorting at disposal sites is labour intensive, time consuming, and requires expensive machinery. It also results in poor quality of sorted material. Waste loses its economic potential in mixed form as different waste components contaminate each other, and their recycling value is seriously compromised.
The waste management authorities in Pakistan have been unable to reform the outdated system. We are neither investing in public awareness nor educating and training waste management authorities to ease the process of decision-making and implementation of a feasible waste system in the country.
Sorting and separately collecting different waste components like organics, recyclables, and non-recyclables near the point of production can capture value in waste. Each waste type can be utilised to its full potential – and can be repaired, reused, recycled, remanufactured, and refurbished, making it sustainable and a valuable component of economy with a maximized functionality.
Recycling businesses would never intervene if clean and desirable waste component is not available in continuity and abundance. People would not adopt waste segregation as a habit if there is no socio-economic benefit. Local and municipal governments and private sectors responsible for ensuring efficient waste management in the country should design and implement behaviour change interventions that could encourage waste minimisation and waste segregation at both household and non-household level.
One such measure could be incentivising and penalising doers and non-doers respectively. This can be done through legal reforms. Encouraging a group of people showing responsible gesture towards environment and cleanliness through social and television media along with personal interview sessions is one successful behaviour change intervention.
In this way we could know how they are managing waste and what challenges they are facing to address them in a better way. Participating houses, commercial entities, governments and educational institutes can be provided symbolic flags to host at their premises. This would distinguish them and may act as tool for awareness raising and incentive for non-doers.
The remaining 30 percent that consists of potential recyclables is already picked up by waste pickers in the informal sector and is sold in the market. Sadly, the role of waste pickers is not acknowledged in the country.
According to a recent research reported in SANDEC news 2022: Department of Sanitation, Water and Solid Waste, the application of a systematic behaviour change approach in a region of Guatemala at the household level known as RANAS (Risk, Attitude, Norm, Ability and Self-regulation) resulted in enhanced waste segregation practice from 17 to 75 percent within just six months.
Organic waste constitutes 50-70 percent of municipal solid waste in Pakistan. It is composed of food waste produced from households’ kitchen activities, restaurants, and markets. It is an important nutrient source that can promote soil health, plant growth and also act as healthy food for animals. We can imagine how big the impact can be if every citizen of Pakistan can manage to prevent the organic waste component from ending up at dump sites. This major proportion of waste would be recycled back into nature becoming part of economy, saving land and huge costs involved in its collection and transport.
This necessary step could significantly improve the health and wellbeing of the society. The remaining 30 percent that consists of potential recyclables is already picked up by waste pickers in the informal sector and is sold in the market. Sadly, the role of waste pickers is not acknowledged in the country.
Unfortunately, they are known as ‘waste pickers’, while they should be named as ‘waste eliminators’ or ‘circularity enablers’. They are the backbone of a waste management hierarchy in Pakistan and play a major role in diverting a huge waste burden from dumpsites and flourishing our recycling industry.
Another commonly practiced solution in many parts of the world is of waste banks or more familiarly known as ‘kabaar khaana’ in Pakistan. Waste bank is a place meant for waste collection and segregating the waste components that have some monetary value and can be sold to recycling agents or directly to factories. Unfortunately, this concept in Pakistan is not well-recognized for its usefulness and is not integrated into the formal waste management system.
Indonesia has done an amazing job in systemising and integrating the concept of waste banks into their mainstream waste management system. It is interesting to know that they started this campaign in 2004 through targeted approach and trained 45 local housewives in Surabaya. They acted as volunteer ‘Agents of Change’ and played significant role in educating dozens of households about the importance of waste segregation at source and recycling practices. In a time period of just two years, with the help of 90 percent of household participation, they have been successful to channel about 70 percent of the municipal waste (including organic waste) away from landfills towards waste banks.
There was a massive increase in the total number of waste banks in Indonesia from 1,172 in 2014 to 11,330 in year 2020. The 3Rs – reduce, recycle and reuse – through waste banks implemented in Indonesia under the the Ministry of Environment Regulation No. 13 of 2012, and Waste Bank Program to Support Clean-from Waste 2025. The efforts of local government, local community and private sector are highly appreciated and needs to be followed. Along with systemisation of waste banking concept in Pakistan, it is also important to introduce and implement the practice of ‘organic waste banks’ so that one could rethink recycling value of an underutilised resource.
In India’s Tamil Nadu, there are more than 700 small composting plants to cater separately collected organic waste. Only decentralised waste management approach and inclusive mindset of both government and public can secure and revitalise the existing waste management system.