Kerala Cities To Be Solid Waste-Free; Project Launched In 93 Urban Bodies

In an effort to make the cities of Kerala free from solid waste, the Kerala government has launched a comprehensive solid waste management project in all the 93 urban local bodies in the state. In the first phase, the project was launched in 87 municipalities and six corporations in the southern state.
      "All local urban bodies have been requested to conduct data collection and GIS mapping to take stock of the quantity of waste generated every day in the households, commercial establishments, markets, schools, and offices,” said Minister for Local Self-Government M V Govindan. On a pilot basis, this was completed in Thalassery Municipality, he said.
        The minister also instructed urban local bodies to complete the same in the remaining 92 municipalities within four months. The GIS mapping activity would be coordinated by the state-run Keltron and the data collection would be done by the respective municipalities, he added.
        The drive would help every local body in creating scientific waste treatment units according to the quantity and nature of the waste generated and also considering the space constraints in each municipality, a statement said here. Land remediation activities also began in the first phase in areas where waste has traditionally been dumped. As many as 34 legacy waste disposal sites have been identified in different districts. 
  As part of the project, more sites will be identified and reclaimed in each municipality in the future. The lands will be reclaimed by segregating the mixed waste heaps that have been accumulated over the years here and treating and disposing of them without any environmental, health, or social issues, the statement further said. 
  There is also a plan to set up a first centralized recycling park in the state through the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model.
 It also aims to harness the industrial potential of producing value-added products from solid waste. Non-recyclable waste will be treated scientifically by constructing modern sanitary landfills to ensure their safe disposal. 
 The State Project Management Unit (SPMU) would assist the municipalities in the implementation of the project. The project is being implemented in the state through a three-tier system that evaluates and monitors the progress and implementation of the project on a daily basis,  it detailed.  A basic grant would be given to all the local bodies to strengthen and enhance the existing waste management systems and the money would be sanctioned based on the approval of the waste management projects submitted by the local bodies, an official statement said here.
        They can also use the grant to implement various solid waste treatment projects tailored to their local specifications, the statement further added.