Ugadi Special - Tree Plantation & #KillBills Pillar Beautification

1. Tree plantation drive along with Sector 3 Team 

2. Continuation on #KillBills Campaign Beautification of the pillars

Click here for pics

Letter to Chief Minister Karnataka - 31 Dec 2015

To,                                                                                                    Date: 31st Dec 2015

Shri Siddaramaiah

Honourable Chief Minister

Govt of Karnataka

Bengaluru

Subject: Garbage Crisis in Bengaluru

Respected Sir,

Wishing You a Very Happy New Year 2016!

Over the last few months the Garbage Crisis has worsened in the city of Bengaluru, the streets have piled up with mountains of Garbage and is raising stink, may even lead to an epidemic.

We do understand that the dumping yards around Bengaluru have been shut down, and rightfully so the residents in the nearby villages have refused dumping of Garbage from Bengaluru that has polluted their Air, Water, Soil and created severe Health problems.

Bengaluru has to own up its Garbage, city should take full responsibility for its Garbage and manage it within the BBMP limits. City Garbage cannot become a problem for the neighbouring Villages or Towns.

Having said that, BBMP is not adequately equipped to address the crisis either, Garbage Mafia has systematically entrenched and weakened the Administration over years. Setting up multiple Composting units and Dry Waste processing centres do take time and cannot be hurried, but the Garbage Crisis cannot wait for the units to become fully operational either.

Bengaluru Garbage Crisis needs a Short-Term and Long-Term solution if the Government and BBMP intends to regain confidence of the Citizens. As a team that has been looking at the Garbage Crisis from Citizen, BBMP, Administration, Garbage Collectors and Environmentalist prospective, we would like to propose the following solutions:

Short-Term Action Plan:

1. Separate Vendors for Wet Waste & Dry Waste Collection: This will forcefully implement Segregation at Source, improve Collection method and foster Timely Collection. 

2. Ban all quality of Plastics Bags: Plastic Bags are the key ingredient to the current Garbage Crisis. Govt has already initiated promotion of subsidies cloth bags via Karnataka Handloom Development Corporation sold through Priyadarshni Handloom stores across the city. These cloth bags if well promoted can become an excellent alternative and can provide livelihood for underprivileged via various Govt schemes. 

3. Create Ward wise SWM Committees: In addition to Ward Committees a focused SWM Committee that includes Citizens, Activist & BBMP will increase monitoring and co-ordination, and will increase Citizen participation. 

4. Invest in Awareness, Manpower & Training: BBMP Awareness programs are not reaching out and are not effective too. Use of Social Media, SMS and Workshops are the need of the hour. NGOs, SWM Experts and Activist have to be engaged more effectively to take the message to the citizens. Pourakarmikas are indeed the least trained/equiped and a lot more is left to be done in this space. 

5. Penalize non-Segregators: This is indeed a much needed strategy, Garbage Collectors or Pourakarmikas can give a regular update on households or entities that are not Segregating as source, a heavy Penalty can indeed ensure they fall in line. 

Long-Term Action Plan:

Government has already initiated Waste-to-Energy plant, but Bengaluru has to plan for managing Waste of over 9000 tons per day. Even though the Wet/Compostable Waste makes up to 60% of Bengaluru Waste, what is not been estimated is the quantity of Construction Debris.

The SWM Policy should include a clear plan for managing Construction Debris, today Construction Debris are getting dumped at Lake beds or on Roads as there is absolutely no estimate of quantity or a defined destination for Debris.

BBMP has to re-estimate the Quantity and Composition of Bengaluru’s Waste, new SWM Policy should include Source, Collection, Transport, Destination (Processing/Treatment/Disposal).

1. Re-estimation of Quantity and Composition of Bengaluru’s Waste
2. Re-Constitution of SWM Expert Committee, bring in Citizens with fresh minds
3. Plan for managing 9000 tons per day with clear expansion plan there after
4. Invest on a sustained long drawn Campaign, Training & Manpower
5. Emphasis on Quality of Segregation & Quality of Collection – Destination 

We do believe that Citizens involvement is very critical to overcome the current Garbage Crisis and as a group of Active, Concerned and well informed Citizens we would like to extend our support to BBMP and to Spl Commissioner SWM to address the Garbage Crisis more effectively and quickly.

Look forward to engage with the BBMP/Administration, and to work towards making Bengaluru Garbage Free.

Warm Regards,

Kavitha Reddy

Founder Member HaSiRu Mithra

19th Workshop

Waste Segregation, Composting, Sustainability Workshop at Ganesha Temple Park, Sector 1, HSR Layout 19th Dec 2015 7am-9am.

Media Coverage of 13th Dec 2015 Workshop

Waste Segregation FAQs

1. What is SWM?  What is MSW?
1. Solid Waste Management, Municipal Solid Waste.

2. What is Waste Segregation or Garbage Segregation?
1. Waste Segregation means keeping Wet, Dry Waste and Rejects/Debris separately so that Dry Waste can be recycled or disposed scientifically, Rejects/Debris  can be treated and sent to landfills and Wet Waste can be composted (converted to manure) or used for bio-gas production

3. Why should we Segregate Waste?
1. Segregation is the first step towards better SWM and a better locality/city.

                                         i.    Reduces Cost of Garbage Management

                                       ii.    Increases Re-cycling & Composting

                                     iii.    Reduces Pollution of Air, Water, Soil

                                      iv.    Increases Environmental Sustainability

                                        v.    Reduces Landfills & Dumping

                                      vi.    Increases faster clearance of Garbage in the locality

                                     vii.    Promotes Healthier, Cleaner & Greener Locality

4. How much Waste Ward 174 & Ward 190 generate?
1. Ward 174 & 190 generates about 22-25 tons of Garbage each per day, per person Waste generation is about 200-450 grams per day.

5. What is the composition of Waste generated in Bengaluru?
1. According to the BBMP SWM report

                                         i.    32 % of Recyclable Waste

                                       ii.    60 % of Organic Waste

                                     iii.    06 % of Debris/Rejects

                                      iv.    02 % of Medical Waste

6. Where does Waste go after Collection for HSR Layout?
1. The Wet/Organic Waste of 6-7 tons per day goes to KCDC located in Somasundrapalya. Dry & e-Waste goes to Dry Waste Collection Center (DWCC) the 24^th Main, next to Bangalore One for separation and then sold to recycling units. Rejects/Debris goes to BBMP identified landfills.

                                                                        

7. What are the different types of Waste?
1. Waste can be classified broadly into 5 types:

                                         i.    Wet or Organic or Compostable Waste

                                       ii.    Dry Waste or Recycle-able Waste

                                     iii.    Medical & Sanitary Waste

                                      iv.    Electronic Waste or e-Waste

                                        v.    Rejects or Debris

8. What is Wet or Organic or Compostable Waste?
1. Vegetables & Fruits Peels, Leftover Food, Leaves, Egg Shells, Meat, Bones, Tea Bags, Coffee Grind, Rotten Vegetables & Fruits, Tissue soiled with Food, Twigs, Flowers and Nutshells.

9. What is Dry Waste or Recycle-able Waste?
1. Paper, Cartons, Boxes, Tins, all Plastic items, Metal items, Cloth, Tetrapak, Aluminium Foil, Runner, Glass Bottles, Balloons, Ceramic, Dusters, Scrubbers, Brushes, Thermocol, Wood, Leather, Rexine, Canvas, Ropes, Coconut Shells.

10. What is Medical & Sanitary Waste?
1. Sanitary Napkins, Diapers, Condoms, Ear buds, Syringes, expired Tablets.

11. What is Electronic Waste or e-Waste?
1. CDs, DVs, Tapes, Batteries, Charges, Unbroken Blubs/Tube lights, Mobiles, Wires.

12. What is Rejects or Debris?

a.    Blades, broken Glass Pieces, Cement, Swept Dust, Pet Poop, Hair, Nails, Soiled Cloths, Construction waste, Ashes, broken Plant Pots, Fireworks/Crackers waste, Cigarette butts.

13.How do I dispose Bouquets?

1. To dispose Bouquets, first separate flowers and leaves and put in Wet Waste and rest i.e sponge, wire etc in Dry Waste.

14. How to dispose Oil/Gravy?

1. Oil can be disposed directly into the drain, in case of Gravy it can be strained out into the drain and the put in the Wet waste bin.

15. How many Bins should we have at home?
1. Ideally 3 Bins/Bags

                                         i.    1 Bin for Wet Waste

                                       ii.    1 Bin for Rejects/Dust/Debris

                                     iii.    1 Bin or Bag for Recycle-able Waste

                                      iv.    Note: e-Waste can be given it in the Recycle-able Waste in a separate cover.

16. Can I give Wet Waste in Plastic Bag, because Bin will become dirty?
1. No, please do not give Wet Waste in Plastic Bag, layer the bin with newspaper, and remove/drain excess water in the Waste and put it in the bin directly. Newspaper will ensure the bin stays clean. Once the Wet Waste is taken, rinse the bin and use.

17. How and when is Waste/Garbage collected?
1. Wet & Reject Waste is collected 5 days a week, and Dry Waste is collected twice a week (Wednesday & Saturday). If your collector is mixing Waste or not collecting Waste please inform BBMP Health Officer Mr Mahesh 9902347688 or HaSiRu Mithra hasirumithra@gmail.com.

18. Is Waste/Garbage collected Door-2-Door even in Apartments?
1. No, Waste is not collected Door-2-Door in Apartments, you have to leave the Waste at a common place designated or as suggested by your RWA, the Collectors will then collect it from the common place.

19. Is non-Segregation of Waste punishable?
1. Yes non-Segregation is punishable; non-compliance will attract penalty from BBMP.

20. Should I/We pay money for the Collector?
1. No, do not pay any money for the Collectors; they have a contract with BBMP for collection. If the Collectors demands money please inform BBMP Health Officer.
2. But if you live in an Apartment please check for the BBMP rules/guidelines on Waste collection with your RWA or with BBMP Health Officer.

21. Whom should I complain if Collector does not come regularly?
1. If the Collector is not regular you can complain to the BBMP Health Officer or HaSiRu Mithra.

22. Can we process our Waste at Home/School/Apartment/Restaurant?
1. Yes you can do Composting at your Home/School/Apartment/Restaurant there are small & medium scale option for Composting, compost can be used for the plants and trees in the garden. Wet Waste can also be converted into Bio-Gas, which can be an alternate cooking fuel. These solutions are cheaper, simple and are readily available.

23. How much money does BBMP spend Garbage Management per year?
1. BBMP spends over Rs 300-500 Crs per year on Garbage Management; Bengaluru spends more money on SWM than any other city. Segregation and better collections can reduce the cost by Rs 200 Crs per year.

24. Will Dry Waste smell if I store it for a week?
1. It will not smell if it is clean and dry, make sure that plastic sachets of Milk, Curds, Oil, Idly batter and any other food item are cleaned of contents and dried before being put in the Dry Waste bag.

25. If I order take away from a local hotel do I have to rinse the plastics bags/containers?
1. Yes, any plastic containing any food has to be rinsed with water and dried before being put into the dry waste bag.

26. How do I dispose dog/cat poop? 
1. Wrap the pet poop in a newspaper, and put it in the Debris/Rejects bin.

27. I have never touched waste in my life, I find it too yucky. 
1. Don’t worry, we all do it yucky! Please use disposable rubber hand-gloves, use them 3-4 times and throw used hand-gloves along with other rejects.

28. My maid disposes off waste in my house and she mixes all the waste. What do I do? 
1. Please train your maid on waste segregation practices or check with your apartment if they offer any training.
2. If you don’t speak Kannada and have any difficulty in explaining to your maid, then please encourage her to attend the training programmes organised by HaSiRu Mithra or any other organisation in your locality. 

29. I don’t have time to line my bins with paper or clean all food packages before putting in Dry Waste bin, what do I do? 
1. Lining your bin with a newspaper does not take much time and saves time later as you don’t have to clean your bin often. Please try it once and see.

2. Leave all your packaged food containers in or near the kitchen sink and ask your maid to rinse them once. You can also re-use all plastic containers; you can even grow plants in them.

30. I have dependent parents/grand-parents/in-laws and children in my house and find it difficult to enforce all these practices. What can I do?
1. Ideally, the bins should be placed in the locations where you generate waste. For example, if you have old people or babies who use diapers, place a rejects bin in the room where they stay and line it with a newspaper, so that it is easy to handle used diapers. If there is a lot of food waste generated in the children’s bedroom, then place a small Wet Waste bin in that room and another bigger one in the kitchen.

31. I already pay my taxes, BBMP should I be Segregating Waste, Why is BBMP putting the burden on me?
1. Sadly, we have not been managing waste properly in India and we are realising now only when it has become too difficult to manage. Segregation of waste is the norm in most countries across the world.

It’s our Constitutional duty to Protect and Improve the Environment (Ref Article 51A of The Constitution of India)

As Citizens we have a responsibility towards Environment Management, we must not only keep our houses clean and tidy but also be concerned about also about our neighbourhood. A Clean Environment leads to a better Health and better Living conditions to everyone. We as Citizens should follow the guidelines of the Civic Authorities at all times. 

Types of Waste and Segregation

1st Meeting of HaSiRu Mithra

1st Meeting of HaSiRu Mithra on 3rd Dec 2015 at Corner House on 27th Main HSR Layout.