India has the second largest population and is one of the fastest growing economies of the world. And while we are leveraging the enormous productivity and consumption potential of our large population to push our economy further, unfortunately, that progress is also being accompanied by an unprecedented level of waste being generated in the country. It is estimated that India’s daily solid waste production is close to 100,000 metric tons per day! Most of this comes from large metropolitan cities.
When such a large amount of waste is produced, it needs to be handled properly. If we don’t handle it carefully it will end up getting into the land or water systems of our country polluting and poisoning them all. At the source itself, this waste needs to be segregated so that it can be handled efficiently. The management of waste and garbage falls into the hands of urban local bodies (ULBs) such as local municipal corporations. ULBs are supposed to handle waste by segregation, collection, transport, processing of waste and proper disposal of hazardous domestic waste. However, there are many gaps when it comes to the final execution of waste management at this scale ranging from a lack of public awareness to unavailability of the best waste management infrastructure and technology in many places.
While this responsibility lies with each and every one of us, some of us are doing much more. Here are some of the startups and bodies which are pushing the possibilities of waste management to keep the country and the planet clean and safe and livable for all for us.
Banyan Nation: Startup Tech Fighting Against Plastic Pollution
Image Credit: Banyan Nation
Banyan Nation is a plastic recycling startup which has exploited the power of data intelligence to help recover post-consumer and post-industrial plastic waste in a more efficient and economical way.
In general, the quality of recycled plastics is much lower than that of new plastics. This is because plastics undergo downcycling which means that unlike other recyclable materials like paper or glass, plastic cannot be recycled into its original (virgin) state, so the recycled plastic is not on par with the original plastics.
Banyan Nation has developed a way in which they can produce near virgin quality recycled plastic granules. They call it the ‘better plastic’ since it is not only of better quality than most recycled plastics but also better for the environment in general. Their belief is in the concept of a circular economy which means that the waste generated by a company will be recycled and used as raw materials for manufacturing in another company. This seriously limits the amount of net waste generated.
In recognition of their work, Banyan Nation was awarded the Dell’s Circular Economy People’s Choice Award at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Banyan Nation has already recycled an estimated seven million pounds of plastic and has plans to increase their production of recycled plastics in the near future.
You can contact Banyan Nation on their website to avail their services. They currently buy plastic scrap in bulk for recycling and they sell different types of recycled plastic to industries. They specialize in recycled resins for consumer packaging, auto components, consumer durables such as furniture, and consumer electronics.
Saahas Zero Waste: Helping Indian Cities Manage Trash
Image Credit: Saahas Zero Waste
Humans generate a lot of waste but it’s believed that most of the waste which we generate is recyclable and can be converted to resources, this is where companies like Saahas Zero Waste (SZW) come in. Saahas Zero Waste is a corporation which focuses on reducing/elimination the amount of waste produced by businesses and residential complexes by focusing on a circular economy. SZW has three main pillars as a part of their circular economy, these include the Zero Waste Programme, Extended Producer Responsibility and the Closing the Loop initiative.
As a part of their Zero Waste Programme, they provide an audit on the waste generated and recommend infrastructure requirements. They also provide consultancy and awareness training for waste management and reduction amongst other solutions. In their Extended Producer Responsibility program, they partner up with companies including packaging and E-waste producing companies to bring back waste in bulk amounts for recycling so that it can be reused by these companies.
As a part of their Closing the Loop initiative, they offer products which are made from recycled waste.
SZW has managed to partner up with major industries to improve their waste management. They have successfully managed to divert an estimated 15,000 tons of waste from landfills and have managed to avoid 19,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions by working in tandem with industries.
SZW can be contacted on their official website. They sell a variety of products made from scrap. They also offer solutions to residences, communities, offices and institutions for waste segregation, collection and reduction to achieve the goal of sustainability.
Namo E-Waste Management Ltd: Processing E-Waste Daily
Image Credit: Namo E-Waste
E-waste or electronic waste refers to discarded electronic equipment. Proper disposal of e-waste is necessary in today’s technological world especially since more and more e-waste will be produced in the future. Improper disposal of e-waste can cause serious environmental distress, the different components used to make electronic devices like semiconductors, transistors, etc. can contain heavy metals like lead, cadmium and beryllium amongst others and can have a detrimental effect on the environment especially in the long run.
Namo E-waste management Ltd focuses on the management of e-waste in a sustainable way. They collect e-waste and bring it back for processing at their R2 certified facility in Faridabad. At their facility, the e-waste is segregated and if certain products are salvageable/repairable they are sent to technicians for QC checks. Other items are dismantled and the individual parts are segregated depending on their condition and type.
Namo E-Waste processes up to 20 tons of e-waste daily and so far they have managed to recycle 108,690 laptops, 78,350 mobile phones and 180,460 home appliances which together contribute to an astounding 8,235,700 kgs of recycled e-waste.
Namo E-Waste currently offers asset refurbishment, data destruction, reverse logistics, Producer responsibility organisation (PRO) service for extended producer responsibility and a recycling certification which certifies the fulfilment of the government’s e-waste rules, as services on their website.
GEM Enviro Management: Green Earth Movement
Image Credit: GEM Enviro Management
Green Earth Movement (GEM) identifies itself as a Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) which means that it helps other organizations fulfil their Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). EPR holds the manufacturer responsible for the entire life-cycle of the product including its proper disposal and recycling so that the product won’t have a negative impact on the environment.
GEM specializes in the collection of packaging waste and facilitating its recycling. Together along with Ganesha Ecosphere Limited (India’s largest PET recycling company), they recycle PET bottles into yarn which is used to make clothes and bags.
As of yet they have processed 6656 tons of waste and have partnerships with companies like Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Bisleri and plan to work towards building a sustainable environment by helping more and more companies fulfil their EPR.
GEM offers services for organisations these include producer responsibility organisation (PRO), extended producer responsibility (EPR), recycling of waste, marketing of recycled products and an awareness programme. These services can be availed by industries by contacting them on their website.
HelpUsGreen: Keeping Rivers Clean
Image Credit: HelpUsGreen
HelpUsGreen is a relatively new startup which collects waste/discarded flowers from temples and uses it to create incense sticks, incense cones and vermicompost. Large temples produce tons of floral waste everyday which usually gets dumped into our rivers. These flowers contain pesticides and insecticides which seep into the river water and has a grave effect on marine life. HelpUsGreen was started by two people who wanted to reduce the waste being dumped into our rivers and make a positive change.
So far HelpUsGreen has managed to give livelihood to 173 women, has helped offset an estimated 275.3kg of pesticide residue and most importantly has helped recycle 2753 metric tonnes of temple flowers.
HelpUsGreen has created an FMCG brand called ‘Phool’ which sells incense sticks, incense cones and vermicompost. These can be bought at their website or also at Amazon.
Extended Producer Responsibility
Businesses should be held accountable for the products which they produce and the impact their products have on the people, animals and the environment. The accountability of a company regarding its product should extend beyond the lifetime of a product, that is when it is considered to be waste. Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is a business model in which a company is socially accountable for the impact their products and practices have on the public and the environment. Extended producer responsibility by companies not only helps them build a brand image but also ensures that the company is sustainable and ethically responsible. More and more businesses are accepting EPR as a business model which is helping them reduce the impact of their waste products on the environment.
Conclusion
Our current practices of waste management as a nation are extremely unsustainable. It’s estimated that the amount of waste generated by our cities will increase by 5% every year. Compounded, it doesn’t take many years to double and quadruple and convert the planet into a waste ground.
The government of India needs to implement and enforce laws which ensure proper waste management like these countries have done. A large part of our country does not dispose of the waste properly, and by education, encouragement or deterrence, we all need to up our waste management game. This includes each and every one of us as much of this waste starts inside our households. More and more corporations and residential complexes need to work in tandem with the government and waste management/recycling startups like the ones mentioned above to reduce the amount of waste they produce, recycle waste products and ensure proper waste management in general to ensure a green, prosperous and sustainable future.
