BCC To Launch Campaign To Educate Citizens

Segregate garbage at your homes
BCC To Launch Campaign To Educate Citizens
The Times of India

Bangalore: A month from now, when the push-cart vendor comes a-ringing to collect waste, you will have to give him two dustbins — one with wet waste, the other dry.

If waste is dumped in just one dustbin, chances are the man in bluegreen uniform will refuse to take it, and the humbled citizen will have to clear it himself.

The BCC plans to introduce the concept of garbage segregation at the source itself — that is at homes. According to its chief health officer Dr Nagarbet: “Residents will have to keep two dustbins — a green one for wet (compostable) waste and a yellow bin for dry waste. The wet waste will be collected as usual every morning, while the yellow bin will be collected every alternate afternoon.’’

Mayor R. Narayanswamy, who supports the initiative whole-heartedly, has filed his own inputs. “I have suggested that instead of push-carts, autorickshaws be deployed to carry 20 containers, with 50 kg capacity. Recyclable material will be collected every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday,’’ he says.

Slated to start in 114 health wards initially, the scheme will traverse across all wards if implemented successfully. And before the programme hits the dustbin in the backyard, there is also going to be a campaign educating people about the virtues of waste segregation, according to BCC officials.

Wet waste connotes anything generated from the kitchen — vegetable and fruit peels, pulp, left-over food matter. Dry waste is typically paper, plastics, glass, metal, leather, rubber, milk covers... it is this recyclable section that is considered problematic by ragpickers and pourakarmikas.

Says Dr Nagarbet: “If people want a cleaner Bangalore, they have greater responsibility. Solid waste management is a complicated programme, people think it is the BCC’s business to keep sweeping the city all the time. Actually, we have started the scheme in three wards, but it is done manually. When segregation at the source starts, it will be entirely mechanised.’’

Eco experts concur that such segregation facilitates aerobic composting — supposed to be a faster and cleaner method without the odour of methane. According to a recent BCCBATF survey, the city generates about 1,783 tonnes of waste per day; the average daily waste generation rate per capita is 0.27 kg, based on a population of 5.6 million.