Your neighbourhood park could hold answer to wet waste management

BENGALURU: As the Bellahalli quarry is brimming over with the city’s garbage,

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike

(

BBMP

) has come up with the idea of

wet waste disposal

in

neighbourhood parks

, where it will be composted.

BBMP owns more than 1,200 parks in its 198 wards and will soon start identifying those which can accommodate waste from the neighbourhood.

Palike commissioner BH Anil Kumar said the civic agency can’t depend on landfills and quarry pits to dump wet waste. “We have to identify appropriate spots in parks to dispose of waste and create composting facilities. Directions have been issued to zero in on the parks. Officials will meet

residents

to convince them about the wet waste disposal method,” he said.

The agency has already converted a park in HSR Layout into a Kalika Kendra (learning centre). For almost a year, it has been showcasing methods of composting and disposing of waste generated from nearby layouts.

“This ward has become a role model for Bengaluru and is collecting and disposing of wet waste scientifically. The concept will be replicated in other wards. The medical officer health will identify spots in the parks,” Kumar maintained.

He said: “We will rope in resident welfare associations to dispose of wet waste in the ward itself. We will convince them by saying the area won’t stink as the waste will be composted every day. We have to take every citizen into confidence to ensure such projects are successful.”

Special commissioner (solid waste management) D Randeep said mixed waste needs to be reduced. “We send the city’s waste to Bellahalli and every time protesters question me why they should bear the burden. Why can’t it be discarded in Lalbagh, they ask. We have to make use of neighbourhood parks to avoid using landfills and quarry pits.”

If everything goes according to the agency’s plans, BBMP may bid goodbye to its strategy of utilising abandoned quarry pits as landfills. However, the Palike claims it may not be possible until every citizen starts segregating waste at source and hands it over to designated contractors. The National Green Tribunal has also warned the agency against relying on landfills.

Segregation level touches 40%
Randeep said BBMP has achieved 40% segregation and it will be strictly implemented once garbage tenders are finalised. “Segregated garbage will be lifted from houses and bulk generators. Contractors will be penalised if auto-tippers end up carrying mixed waste. Jurisdictional junior health inspectors too will be penalised for not monitoring garbage disposal,” he said.

The city collects around 2,500 metric tonnes of mixed waste. “Our aim is to collect only segregated waste. A few wards have achieved 80% segregation, while a few commercial ones haven’t even reached 10%. SWM rules permit us to enhance penalty rates at regular intervals,” he added.