Source : The Hindu Date : 27.06.2009
Handle waste innovatively
Mythili G. Nirvan
| Biogas plant can convert it into cooking gas |
The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) had issued a notification a few years ago informing all apartments with more than 100 flats and owners/associations of non-residential buildings with more than 10,000 sq. m. of built-up area to collect the garbage generated in their buildings and segregate it as biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste. Thereafter the segregated garbage shall be kept in one place within their premises and will be collected by the BBMP.
However, it is unfortunate that not all large apartment and commercial complexes follow this. Even if they do, few segregate the biodegradable from the non-biodegradable waste. Bangalore has run out of space for dumping garbage due to non-availability of landfills in the heart of the city. It is time that solid waste management systems were put in place to tackle this serious issue, particularly in hotels, tech parks, wedding halls and large residential and commercial complexes that generate large quantities of waste.
One of the innovative ways of waste management which has proved successful is to set up a biogas plant in the premises. It not only takes care of the waste, but converts it into cooking gas as well!
How it works
“A biogas plant can be set up by any large residential or commercial establishment. It works like this: when the waste is fed into the digester, anaerobic digestion of organic material by bacteria takes place inside. This process releases methane gas, which is collected in the biogas holder. From there, pipelines are drawn to the kitchen where it can be used for cooking,” explains Ramakumar P., Associate Vice-President, Enzen Global Solutions, an energy and environment consulting company. “The residues in the digestor move to the outlet tank which is a rich source of organic manure, and can be used for gardening.”
Proactive effort
The biogas way of waste management has been successfully implemented by the Velankani Tech Park in Electronics City where more than 4,500 employees work. “At Velankani, we were facing a challenge with waste food disposal at the canteen. Hence we mooted the proposal for alternative forms of using this resource for an internal application and address waste management issues. Utilising waste for a biogas application for the heating requirements in the canteen resulted in savings both in terms of waste disposal cost & LPG consumption,” explains V.S. Gangadhara Rao, Director, Velankani Renewable Energy Pvt Ltd.
“Presently, the waste per day averages about 150-180 kg. We save an average of Rs. 270 per day which is around Rs. 9,000 a month and around Rs. 1 lakh a year,” he adds.
However, there is a need for large-scale effort in this direction. “Segregation of waste must be made mandatory, especially in large residential and commercial complexes. The government could even consider giving incentives for initiatives like these, like it does for solar water heaters and rainwater harvesting,” suggests Mr. Ramakumar.
