There's cash in trash, say experts

The state and central governments should take steps to effectively manage solid waste, experts at a conference here said.

Stating that recycling has acquired huge proportions as an industry in Europe, L J M Hogendoorn, advisor, Netherlands Management Co-operation Programme, said the governments here should take the initiative in solid waste management.

Hogendoorn was in Ahmedabad to attend 'Envirotech 2003', a conference organised by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) at Tagore Hall.

P U Asnani, regional co-ordinator, United States of America Environmental Programme (USAEP), said, "Solid waste management is a serious problem and the municipalities and the industry have failed in dealing with it. It has come to such a stage that the Supreme Court had to intervene. Approximately one lakh tonne of waste is generated per day, out of which at least 20,000 tonnes per day can be recycled. A major portion of the remaining waste is organic and the Supreme Court has made it mandatory for the municipalities to compost this waste."

Asnani has served as the advisor to the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) for a long period.

He said the industries should come forward to recycle solid waste. Solid waste management can be a Rs 3,000 crore industry and the businesses should utilise this opportunity, he said.

Hogendoorn visited various landfill and treatment sites in the cities of Gujarat and made various recommendations to the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation for solid waste management. He said, "Gujarat should take initiatives in informing, educating and encouraging participation of society in solid waste management."

The three-day event presented a forum for the industry to present and display the efforts and challenging innovations undertaken in India and the world in the environment sector.

'Envirotech 2003' had a confluence of major corporates like Enercon, Ondeo, Nalco India Ltd, Rochem Seperations Systems, Alostom, Thermax Ltd, NEG Micon, Naroda Enviro Projects Ltd, Ion Exchange, DNV and Zenon Inc, sources said.

Bharat Jain, member secretary, Gujarat Cleaner Production Centre, (GCPC), sketched the activities of the Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation, (GIDC) and GCPC in providing basic infrastructure to the industries in the Golden Corridor.

GSPC has been instrumental in creating cleaner production awareness as a better alternative through training and demonstration activities.

Industries that have invested in good house-keeping have saved to the tune of more than Rs five crore, the Jain said.

The basic tenet lies in the simple understanding that it is better to attack waste at source of generation than to waste scarce resources in treating it after it has been generated, Jain added.