DATE DOWNLOADED: Fri Nov 6 10:30:40 2020

SOURCE: Content Downloaded from HeinOnline

Citations:

Bluebook 21st ed.

Sneha Maji, Collaboration of Technology and Law for Solid Waste Management in India,
6 INDIAN J.L. & PUB. POL'y 48 (2019).

ALWD 6th ed.

Maji, S. ., Collaboration of technology and law for solid waste management in india,
6(1) Indian J.L. & Pub. Pol'y 48 (2019).

APA 7th ed.

Maji, S. (2019). Collaboration of technology and law for solid waste management in
india. Indian Journal of Law & Public Policy, 6(1), 48-61.

Chicago 7th ed.

Sneha Maji, "Collaboration of Technology and Law for Solid Waste Management in
India," Indian Journal of Law & Public Policy 6, no. 1 (Winter 2019): 48-61

McGill Guide 9th ed.

Sneha Maji, "Collaboration of Technology and Law for Solid Waste Management in India"
(2019) 6:1 Indian J of L & Public Policy 48.

MLA 8th ed.

Maji, Sneha. "Collaboration of Technology and Law for Solid Waste Management in
India." Indian Journal of Law & Public Policy, vol. 6, no. 1, Winter 2019, p. 48-61.
HeinOnline.

OSCOLA 4th ed.

Sneha Maji, 'Collaboration of Technology and Law for Solid Waste Management in India'
(2019) 6 Indian JL & Pub Pol'y 48

-- Your use of this HeinOnline PDF indicates your acceptance of HeinOnline's Terms and
Conditions of the license agreement available at
https://heinonline.org/HOL/License
-- The search text of this PDF is generated from uncorrected OCR text.
-- To obtain permission to use this article beyond the scope of your license, please use:
Copyright Information
 COLLABORATION OF TECHNOLOGY AND LAW FOR SOLID WASTE
MANAGEMENT IN INDIA

- Sneha Maji*

ABSTRACT

Waste is an unavoidable by product of human beings. With the economic advancement and
rising the standard of living the complexity and quantity of the waste generated is also rising
significantly. Disposition of solid waste has become a real concern for the government both
at rural and urban areas. Municipal solid waste management needs technical feasibility,
financial sustainability and social participation According to the Associated Chambers of
Commerce and Industry (ASSOCHAM), "India is generating 130 million tons of e-waste as
of 2018.With the development and progress in the society the lifestyle of the people is
changing thus presently solid waste consists of both biodegradable and non biodegradable
products.

Keeping in mind the principle of development and sustainability Indian government has taken
major incentives to reuse, recycle and replenish solid waste through robust system of waste
management and legal stimuli.

Vermi-composting, biomethanation, anaerobic digestion, pyrolysis and Gasification are

some of the commonly used process to tackle solid waste in India. Municipal Solid Wastes
(Management and Handling) Rules, 2000apply to every municipal authority which is
responsible for 'collection, segregation, storage, transportation, processing and disposal' of
municipal solid wastes, waste management should also be abided by the provisions of
Environment Protection Act 1986 and other National Environment policies.

In this paper statutory regulation over solid waste management incorporating technological
advancement is discussed in detail.

The paper will also focus on the significance of Hazardous Wastes Rules 2008, Plastic Waste
rule 2011, Bio-medical waste Rule 1998 etc in harnessing Pollution free Environment.

Keywords- Solid waste, Sustainability, Disposition, State Pollution control Board, Single-use
plastic.

* The Author is a 3 rd year Student at Amity Law School, Noida, Amity University.

48
SOLID WASTE

Waste is an irresistible factor of living beings; it's a result of biochemical process going on
inside the building blocks of living creatures i.e. the cell.' With the economic advancement
and rising the standard of living the complexity and quantity of the waste generated is also
rising significantly."Solid waste" means any and all matter and materials which are rejected,
abandoned, or discarded by the owners or producers thereof as offensive or useless, or no
longer desired by the owners or producers thereof, and which by their presence or
accumulation may injuriously affect the health, comfort or safety of the community by
increasing disease or hazard by fire. 2Disposition of solid waste has become a real concern for
the government both at rural and urban areas. Municipal solid waste management needs
technical feasibility, financial sustainability and social participation and an effective
management of the "Municipal solid waste" (MSW) is a term usually applied to a
heterogeneous collection of wastes produced in urban areas, the nature of which varies from
region to region. 3 Solid waste consists of all kind of non-liquid waste but sometimes nappies
and faces of kids can be mixed with solid waste. Open burning, Dumping into the sea,
Sanitary Landfills, Incineration, Composting, Ploughing in fields, Hog feeding, Grinding and
discharging into sewers are the major ways of disposing the solid waste.

ORIGINATION AND CATEGORIZATION

Medical center, Food store, domestic area, public and private offices, schools, colleges,
Industrial areas, slaughter areas, market places are the common sources of waste generation
in our daily life. Solid waste generated can be categorized in various ways- 4

1. Organic waste (Organic wastes contain materials which originated from living organisms.
Organic wastes are often disposed of with other wastes in landfills or incinerators, but since
they are biodegradable, some organic wastes are suitable for composting and land
application) 5 .Organic waste comprises horticulture waste, Farming waste, domestic refuses
etc.

'Introduction of waste-United Nations ESCAP, Chapter-8.

2 https://www.codepublishing.com/CA/SantaCruz/html/SantaCruz6/SantaCruzO612.html
(Aug.27,2019,12:33PM)
' Solid Waste Management (Volume I), ISBN: 92-807-2676-5, United Nations Environment Program.
http://www.unep.or.jp/ietc/publications/spc/solid-waste-management/VolI/Binderl.pdf.
4
https://ec.europa.eu/echo/files/evaluation/watsan2005/annexfiles/WEDC/es/ESO7CD.pdf
5 https://www.encyclopedia.com/environment/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/organic-
waste(Aug.27,2019,7:46AM)

49
2. Inorganic waste- Inorganic solid wastes can either be non-hazardous or hazardous in
nature. Inorganic non-hazardous solid wastes are primarily from mining sector and these
wastes are the primary process rejects which constitute over-burden wastes. However, the
inorganic hazardous wastes are mainly from the secondary process of non-ferrousmetal
extraction like lead, zinc, and copper. 6

3. Combustible and Non-combustible waste- Paper, wood, dried leaves, packaging for
relief items etc (high organic and low moisture content) Non-combustibles comprises Metal,
tin cans, bottles, stones, etc

4. Bulky waste, Ashes- means oversize waste, including but not limited to large discarded
materials; appliances, furniture, junked automobile parts, large tree branches, stumps, and
concrete rubble, means residue from burning of combustible materials.

5.Hazardous waste- means any waste material, or combination thereof, which poses a
substantial present or potential hazard to human health or living organisms because such
wastes are non-biodegradable or persistent in nature or because they can be biologically
magnified, or because they can be lethal, or because they may otherwise cause or tend to
cause detrimental cumulative effects. Hazardous waste includes, but is not limited to,
explosives, pathological wastes, radioactive materials and chemicals which may be harmful
to the public during normal storage, collection or disposal cycle, hazardous materials
contained in consumer products packaged for distribution to and used by the general public,
and any other materials defined as hazardous waste by state or federal law or regulation.7

THE PROCESS OF MANAGEMENT OF GENERATED WASTE

All acceptable wastes shall be removed, collected and disposed of by city forces and every
person producing solid wastes shall cause the same to be collected by the city, its authorized
agents or other qualified operative as provided by the municipal code.

The city shall also operate a curbside recycling collection program which shall be under the
operational control of the director of public works and shall endeavor to meet or exceed

6 Asokan Pappu et al,"Solid wastes generation in India and their recycling potential in building materials",
http://dspace.library.iitb.ac.in/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10054/1649/5691.pdf?sequence=1 &isAllowed=y
(Aug.27,2019,12:33PM)
'https://www.codepublishing.com/CA/SantaCruz/html/SantaCruz6/SantaCruzO612.html
((Aug.27,2019, 7:59AM).

50
annual recycling goals prescribed by local and state authority. sThe major stages of solid
waste management are-Generation-Storage-Transportation-Disposal.

Generation-At this stage the waste becomes valueless for its owner and he wants to get rid of
it. Globally the estimated quantity of wastes generation was 12 billion tones in the year
2002of which 11 billion tones were industrial wastes and 1.6billion tones were municipal
solid wastes (MSW), about 960 million tones of solid waste is being generated annually as
by-products during industrial, mining, municipal, agricultural and other processes. Of this350
million tones are organic wastes from agricultural sources;290 million tones are inorganic
waste of industrial and mining sectors and4.5 million tones are hazardous in nature. 9

Storage-Before the waste is collected for final disposal need to be stored in container where
from it is being taken to the disposal area. Small container in household, big containers like
the communal bins and oil drums, shallow pits and communal depots are the major storage
places of solid waste before being taken for disposal. The storage can be hauled container to or
stationary container, however in Indian context the container collecting the waste are
stationary.

Collection-It is the process of collection of waste from communal bins or other container to
the final disposal area inclusive of a series of activities such as loading of waste into
collection vehicles, and unloading of waste from collection vehicles at communal collection
points, processing places, transfer stations and final disposal sites. Collection can be of
various forms i.e. communal system, Block collection, Alley collection methods.1 1

a) In communal system of collection the waste is collected from common bins located at
specific public places. One of the major disadvantages of the method of waste
collection is lack of ownership possessed by the public and lead to littering of waste
around the bins.
b) The individuals are required to carry their waste to the collector in case of Block
Collection.

Section-6.12.020. The general provision, The Santa Cruz Municipal code.

https://www.codepublishing.com/CA/SantaCruz/html/SantaCruz06/SantaCruz0612.html
9 Asokan Pappu et al,"Solid wastes generation in India and their recycling potential in building material".
http://dspace.library.iitb.ac.in/xmlui/bitstream/handle/10054/1649/5691.pdf?sequence=1 &isAllowed=y. (Aug.27
,2019, 7:59AM)
10
An empty storage container also known as drop off box is hauled to the storage site to replace the container
that is full of waste.
" "Collection and Transfer of Solid Waste", CE 431: Solid Waste Management.
http://uap-bd.edu/ce/nehreen/Lecture%204_431.pdf (Aug. 27,2019, 12:47 PM).

51
 c) Waste generators place the waste containers or bags (sacks) on the kerbor in the alley
on a specific day (or specific days) for collection by external actors. This is the most
common collection method in industrialized countries and in the wealthier
12
communities of some developing countries.

Disposal- "disposal" means the activities to minimize the quantity of produced solid wastes,
to decrease and even eliminate hazardous components in solid wastes, the activities to contain
solid wastes in a location or facilities which meet environmental protecting standard without
the need to isolate from the biological environment 13 .It is the last stage of waste management
and ultimate fate of waste id disposal. As the terminal action for pollution control of solid
waste, the final target of disposal is to isolate solid waste and its environmental impact from
biosphere, to limit the infection of hazardous components in wastes to be lower than
acceptable levels, and to guarantee the safety of human's health and environment. 14With the
passage of time the complexity and sources of waste are rising making the transportation of
waste and operation at the disposal site more cumbersome. Disposal is the most important
stage of waste management because the main object of waste management lies in safe and
reliable long term disposal of waste. Landfiling happens to be one of the traditional way of
waste disposal however thermal conversion, incineration, composting, recycling etc are
followed as a method a disposing in various society.

CASE STUDY

Major step taken by a small town in West Bengal to turn waste into wealth:
-

Chandannagar (also known by its former name Chandannagore and French name
Chandernagor)is a city in the Hooghly district in the Indianstate of West Bengal. It is the
headquarter of the Chandannagore subdivision and is part of the area covered by the Kolkata
Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA). Located on the western bank of Hooghly
River, the town was a former French colony. The city has a unique culture due to the mixed

12 Collection and Transfer of Solid Waste", CE 431: Solid Waste Management.

http://uap-bd.edu/ce/nehreen/Lecture%204_431.pdf (Aug. 27,2019, 12:47 PM).
13
Vol.I,Yuan Guangyu, "Disposal of Solid Wastes", POINT SOURCES OF POLLUTION: LOCAL EFFECTS
AND IT'S CONTROL.
https://www.eolss.net/Sample-Chapters/C09/E4-11-03-03.pdf
14Vol.IYuanGuangyu, "Disposal of Solid Wastes", POINT SOURCES OF POLLUTION: LOCAL EFFECTS
AND IT'S CONTROL.
https://www.eolss.net/Sample-Chapters/C09/E4-11-03-03.pdf (Aug.27, 2019, 2:12PM).

52
Bengali culture and French culture, different from other cities in West Bengal. The total area
is 20 square kilometers having a population of over 150,000. A 163-year-old municipality
administering a small town in West Bengal has shown the world how to manage solid waste
in an eco-friendly way, potentially giving urban planners and administrators the key to
tackling one of the biggest civic problems.

The initiatives of Uttarpara-Kotrung municipality helped the Kolkata Solid Waste

Management Improvement Project win a global award, defeating nearest contenders
Auckland and Milan in urban solid waste management category in the C40 Mayors' Summit
held in Mexico City on December 1. 15 The municipality adopted communal system of
garbage collection and transport the same in the disposal area either by tricycle or tractor. The
bio-degradable waste goes to the adjacent compost plant. The municipality sells the bio-
manure produced at the plant from its counter and through marketing agents. Dumping
garbage along the road side is very common in small towns in India and Chandannagar was
not an exception to the fact. The municipality stopped dumping along the road and on any
open spots and engaged more than two dozen rag-pickers at the transfer site, they further
segregate whatever bio-degradable waste had remained in the non biodegradable slot.

The municipality collects 12-14 tons of waste every day and produces 3-4 tone manure daily.
They, however, have the capacity of producing up to 10 tons of manure per day. 16

Sanitary waste management-The Red Dots Campaign

Sanitary waste management is a mammoth task for India and need major action plans for
prevention of environmental and health hazards in the country. The government of India has
been a global leader in its concerted efforts to make sanitary pads available to young women
across the country, and sanitary pad manufacturers are making a variety of products available
in urban as well as rural settings. The latest National Family Health Survey 4 survey (2015-
16) reflects such efforts with 57.6 percent of women aged 15-24 years reporting the current
use of safe, hygienic products

15
Snigdhendu Bhattachaya, "A tiny town in West Bengal is turning waste into piles of wealth", Hindustan
Times,Dec 13, 2016 20:44 IST.
16
Snigdhendu Bhattachaya, "A tiny town in West Bengal is turning waste into piles of wealth", Hindustan
Times,Dec 13, 2016 20:44 IST.

53
1. Increased availability and use of disposable sanitary pads underscores the need for
appropriate and safe management of menstrual waste. Two main concerns are central to the
management of menstrual waste in India: first, many girls and women lack access to
appropriate waste management options that may lead to the unhygienic use of safe
absorbents, for instance, girls using a single pad for 12 hours

2. Secondly, the paucity of disposal and treatment options may lead to the unsafe
management of a mounting volume of menstrual waste. If an estimated 121 million girls and
women are currently using an average of eight disposable (non-compostable) sanitary pads a
month, the waste load generated in India is estimated to b 1.021 billion pads disposed
monthly12.

3 Billion pads disposed annuallyll3,000 tones of menstrual waste annually SWM Rules
acknowledge that according to the Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules 2016, items
contaminated with blood and body fluids, including cotton, dressings, soiled plaster casts,
lines and bedding, are bio-medical waste and should be incinerated, autoclaved or microwave
to destroy pathogens. Followings are the common ways to dispose menstrual waste by
adolescent girls in India-17

1. Throwing in the routine dustbins- Menstrual waste enters the solid waste stream and
undergoes the same treatment.
2. Throwing away in Open areas- contaminate water bodies, soil and generates anawful
site.
3. Burning-Burning commercially available sanitary pads at low temperature will create
odor.
4. Flushing down in toilets-Used pads mixed with faecal sludge and complicates
disposal of that sludge.

Current scenario states following three major steps have taken in India to combat the threats
from menstrual waste-is

1. Incinerator-The disposal sanitary napkins are made of plastics which are non
degradable and menstrual waste is biochemical waste hence the same has to be treated

17
https://path.azureedge.net/media/documents/ID mhmmenswaste-man.pdf
" https://path.azureedge.net/media/documents/ID-mhmmenswaste-man.pdf (Aug.27, 2019, 8:46 PM).

54
 under high temperature to demolish the bacteria and other infection causing factors.
Incinerators can be of various types- 1. Clay pots- there are locally made and lost cost
incinerators with no such technological complication and no measures to control the
harmful fuel generated on burning the waste. 2. High temperature Incinerators for bio-
chemical waste- Waste is burned in large scale incinerators specially designed to
dispose bio-medical waste.3-Incinerators with waste to energy technology- Waste is
incinerated to produce energy/electricity. Combustion happens in highly controlled
environments carefully regulating temperature and pressure, potentially controlling
for emissions even at low temperatures, but this set up is very costly and cannot be
implemented by local self government.
2. Segregation and identification of menstrual waste- Pune's SWaCH waste picker
cooperative, the KKPKP waste-picker trade union and PMC - kicked off a massive,
city-wide "Red Dot" campaign. Aimed at improving the way residents dispose of
their sanitary waste (diapers and sanitary napkins). Volunteers are using their
creativity to request people to securely wrap their sanitary waste in a newspaper and
mark it with a red dot. For easy wrapping of sanitary waste, Red Dot paper bags can
be purchased from SWaCH. SWaCH hopes that other businesses will follow suite and
will start distributing their own Red Dot bags and educational signs across the city1 9
3. Composting pits for biodegradable menstrual product- Bio-digester technology for
(compostable) menstrual waste inclusive of Recycling of menstrual waste ,Vermi-
culture

Menstruation is considered as a taboo in India and the way menstrual waste handled clearly
indicated that the process of handling menstrual waste is brushed below the carpet.

"Initially when I joined SWaCH in 2004, it was shocking to see my co-workers

removing sanitary waste from the wet waste with their hands. It has been 13 years
and even today I have to hand segregate the menstrual waste and deal with flies,
insects and the unbearable smell on a daily basis. Twice I was diagnosed with
bacterial infection, but now I am used to it. ", 43-year old Sarru Waghmare's rag
picker.

191"Red-Dot campaign launched across Pune", Express News Service,Pune. Feb. 8, 2017 6:01:57
am
https://indianexpress.com/article/cities/pune/red-dot-campaign-launched-across-pune-4513296/ (Aug.27, 2019,
8:46 PM).

55
Cooperative SWACH (Solid Waste Collection and Handling) along with Kagad Kach Patra
Kastakari Panchayat (KKPKP), a trade union of waste pickers, and the Pune Municipal
Corporation have started the arduous process of inculcating sanitary waste management
techniques. The residents of Pune were asked to dispose sanitary napkins by putting a red
dots on the rapper which would help the rag picker to identify menstrual waste and the same
be dealt accordingly.

SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT UNDER THE PURVIEW OF INDIAN

CONSTITUTION

Environment is the conditions that one live or work in and the way that one influence how
one feel or how effectively one can work connotes Cambridge dictionary. The term
environment has been derived from a French word "Environia" means to surround. It refers
to both abiotic and biotic components. The Constitution of India makes it obligatory for the
citizens and the state to protect and improve the environment through Article 51-A (g) and
Article-48.

Article-51A (g) states that it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve
the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers, and wildlife and to have compassion
for living creatures. Fundamental duties of citizens is to protect and improve the natural
environment including the forests, lakes etc and the endeavor of the human beings should be
to protect environment and forest 20The word environment has a broad spectrum and within its
ambit fall "hygienic atmosphere" and "ecological balance". The state is thus under the
obligation to maintain hygienic environment and ecological balance.Article-21 protects the
right to life as a fundamental right and it encompasses within its ambit enjoyment of life and
right to life with human dignity, protection and preservation of environment, ecological
balance free from pollution of air and water without which life cannot be enjoyed. The apex
court has emphasized that environment is not the property of any individual or state but a
national asset and it is the obligation of all to protect and conserve the same and its proper
utilization must have regard to the principles of sustainable development and
intergenerational equity 2 1. Hygienic Environment is an integral part of healthy life and right
to live with human dignity becomes illusory in the absence of humane and healthy

20
Nagrik Chatna Manch v. State of Maharashtra, 2016 (2) AIR Bom R 142.
21
T.N. Godavaraman Thirumulpad V. Union of India, (2006) 1 SCC 1.

56
environment.22 The expansive interpretation of "life" under Article-21 has led to the salutary
development of an environmental jurisprudence in India. Although a number of statutes have
been enacted with a view to protect the environment from pollution but the unfortunate fact
being lack of active participation of the administrative body in pursuance of the object to
have a pollution free environment and restoration of the hygienic condition of human life.
Any disturbance of the basic environment elements, namely the air, water and soil which are
necessary for "life" would be hazardous to "life" within the meaning of life under Article-21
of the constitution. The Supreme Court has accepted the doctrine of public trust which rests
on the premise that certain natural resources like air, water, sea are the means for general use
and cannot be restricted to private ownership. These are gifts of nature and the state as a
trustee thereof is duty bound protecting them. The state is the trustee and the general public is
the beneficiary of such natural resources such as sea, air water. 23

It can easily be concluded from the above judicial pronouncement that disposition of waste in
open spaces is a blatant violation of right to life of people which is a fundamental right
enshrined in the part III of The Indian constitution, 1950.It is the fundamental duty of the
state and the citizen to protect and improve the environmental condition such making
scientific waste management and waste treatment is an integral component of the same. The
State shall Endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests
and wild life of the country 24.To protect the environment the court can take affirmative action
by mandating the state to take action for that purpose. 25

Court On Its Own Motion v Union Of India & Ors 2 6

To counter the ever increasing use of plastic in the Yatra area, the SHPC recommends the
following:

a) The State Government should direct the concerned law enforcement agency(ies) to take all
required steps, on a time bound basis, to enforce the current statutory ban on the use of
plastic.

b) SASB should progressively arrange facilities for drinking water filters being set up at
Camps and Langar sites to discourage the use of water bottles in the Yatra area. The aim

22
State of M.P. v Media Leather & Liquor Ltd. (2003) 10 SCC 389.
23
M.C. Mehta v Kamal Nath, (1997)1 SCC 388.
24 Article-48A,The Indian Constituion,1950
25
Fomento resots and Hotels Limited v. Minguel Martins, (2009) 3 SCC 571.
26
W.P.(C) 5913/2010

57
should be to provide a viable alternative to plastic water bottles in due course. The SASB
could also consider introducing a "deposit amount" scheme under which the deposit is
returnable when the beverage bottle is brought back to the disposal site.

c) Pictorial signage (in place of the existing signage in Hindi and English) should be used at
all prominent places. This would be helpful in also educating the Yatris about the need to
keep the Yatra area free from plastic materials.

d) The SASB should suitably revise the existing Terms and Conditions of the permissions
given to Langar Organisations to ensure that that no plastic material is used for serving food
and beverages to the Yatris. There should be adequate monitoring of the implementation of
these conditions and all cases of non-adherence must be penalised severely.

All biological waste should be disposed off in compost pits, which should be built in the
Langar areas. The Langar Organisations must be made fully responsible for ensuring the
segregation and safe disposal of wastes. Further, no Langar site should be cleared without the
availability of mandatory facilities for waste segregation and disposal. SASB should establish
a suitable monitoring mechanism in this regard. The Terms and Conditions of the permission
given to the Langar Organisations must be revised to include the aforesaid conditions as also
a provision for the imposition of stringent penalties in the case of any default. The SHPC
suggests that an increased number of garbage bins, with pictorial signage for segregating bio-
degradable waste from non bio-degradable ones, would further reduce littering in the Yatra
area.

The concerned District Administrations must identify the sites and create this infrastructure
expeditiously as per the Municipal Solid Waste Rules, in consultation with the SPCB. This
infrastructure is vital, not only for the Yatra, but also for the growing number of tourists and
other business visitors in the larger area.

It must be ensured that after the dismantling of Yatra Camps and Langers, consequent to the
conclusion of the Yatra, all solid waste is collected and properly disposed off by the relevant
authorities. CEO, SASB, should in consultation with SPCB, put in place an appropriate
monitoring mechanism in this regard.

The State R&B Department should urgently upgrade the road from RangaMorh to Domail so
that it is able to withstand the very heavy traffic during the Yatra period and the problem of
dust and mud is controlled.

58
 The SPCB should conduct analytical studies every year to monitor the quality of water in
Lidder and Sindh rivers and share the findings, along with actionable suggestions, with SASB
and the State Government. The SPCB also needs to early upgrade its own testing facilities.

HAZARDOUS WASTES (MANAGEMENTHANDLING AND TRANSBOUNDARY

MOVEMENT) RULES, 2008

Every person who is engaged in generation, processing, treatment, package, storage,

transportation, use, collection, destruction, conversion, offering for sale, transfer or the like of
the hazardous waste shall require to obtain an authorization from the State Pollution Control
Board 2 7 Section 4 of the impugned act makes it obligatory for the occupier to safe and
environmentally handling of hazardous waste generated at his establishment. The occupier
must make the best attempt to recycle- reprocess and reprocess the waste generated. If the
state pollution control is with the opinion that the occupier has not complied with the rules
stated in the act he has all the power to cancel or suspend the authorization license of the
occupier over his workplace. 28The act also made it obligatory for the state for proper
treatment, storage and disposal facility of hazardous waste- 29

(1) The State Government, occupier, operator of a facility or any association of occupiers
shall individually or jointly or severally be responsible for, and identify sites for establishing
the facility for treatment, storage and disposal of the hazardous wastes in the State.

(2) The operator of common facility or occupier of a captive facility, shall design and set up
the Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facility as per technical guidelines issued by the Central
Pollution Control Board in this regard from time to time and shall obtain approval from the
State Pollution Control Board for design and layout in this regard from time to time.

(3)The State Pollution Control Board shall monitor the setting up and operation of the
Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities regularly.

(4)The operator of the Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facility shall be responsible for safe
and environmentally sound operation of the Treatment, the Storage and Disposal Facility and
its closure and post closure phase, as per guidelines issued by the Central Pollution Control
Board from time to time.

27 Section-5, Hazardous Wastes(Management, Handling and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2008

28
Section-6, Hazardous Wastes (Management, Handling and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2008.
29
Section-18, Hazardous Wastes (Management, Handling and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2008.

59
(5) The operator of the Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facility shall maintain records of
hazardous wastes handled by him.

THE PLASTIC WASTE (MANAGEMENT AND HANDLING) RULES, 2011

Plastic" means material which contains as an essential ingredient a high polymer and which
at some stage in its processing into finished products can be shaped by flow 3 0 .Plastic waste
management is the process of recycling, recovery or disposal of plastic waste under the
regulations of central government. The act makes it obligatory for the municipal authority to
assist and coordination of the process of waste management for safe disposal of the same
under the provision of section-6 of The Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules,
2011

During the course of manufacture, stocking, distribution, sale and use of carry bags and
sachets, the following conditions shall be fulfilled, namely:-

Carry bags shall either be in natural shade (colorless) which is without any added pigments
or made using only those pigments and colorants which are in conformity with Indian
Standard: IS 9833:1981 titled as List of pigments and colorants for use in plastics in contact
with foodstuffs, Pharmaceuticals and drinking water, as amended from time-to-time; no
person shall use carry bags made of recycled plastics or compostable plastics for storing,
carrying, dispensing or packaging food stuffs; no person shall manufacture, stock, distribute
or sell any carry bag made of virgin or recycled or compostable plastic, which is less than 40
microns in thickness; sachets using plastic material shall not be used for storing, packing or
selling gutkha, tobacco and pan masala; recycled carry bags shall conform to the Indian
Standard: IS 14534:1998 titled as Guidelines for Recycling of Plastics, as amended from
time-to-time, carry bags made from compostable plastics shall conform to the Indian
Standard: IS/ISO 17088:2008 titled as Specifications for Compostable Plastics, as amended
from time-to-time, plastic material, in any form, shall not be used in any package for packing
gutkha, pan masala and tobacco in all forms. 31

30Section-3(l), The Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011.

31
Section-5, The Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011.

60
CONCLUSION

The first and the foremost task for effective waste management system is to identify all the
sources of waste generation and once the sources are identified reduction of sources of waste
generation is required. Use if separate bins for biodegradable, non-biodegradable waste is not
practiced in the integral parts of India resulting accumulation of various waste at one place
making it impossible to generate manure from the biodegradable waste. In major cities of the
waste from the city is collected and disposed in vacant land in the outskirt of the city making
it impossible for the residents in the surrounding area to live a decent life because of the foul
smell prevails in the air and affecting the health of the nearby people due to bacterial
infections, not only that the ground water is also contaminated due to this unscientific way of
waste disposition. India discards 15,000 tones of plastic daily and out of this 43% is single-
use. Single -use plastic such as flexi banners, plastic bags, stirrers, straws etc which have
easy and safe non-plastic alternatives must be banned. Material recovery facilities have to be
set up by corporations where segregated plastics will be taken. All forms of plastic with the
passage of time weather into micro form of itself and they flow from open dumps into drains
to river finally contaminating sea. 80% of the ocean plastic has come from land and on a
recent study IIT Bhubaneswar has found micro form of plastic in sea salt thus this is the high
time to limit and abolish the extend of plastic thus aiding toward ecological balance.
Charging hefty fines could be one of the most effective ways of controlling the haphazard
flow of plastic. On 20" August, 2019 the parliament of India has announced that it would ban
the use of plastic items in the complex and from 2 nd October, 2019 railways will ban single
use plastics. Indian government has already announced plans to phase out disposable plastics
by 2022 and the country is looking for its active implementation and successful achievement.

61