Municipal Solid Waste Management In Kolhapur, India: Need For Decentralized Composting

The management of municipal solid waste is emerging as an environmental issue in India. Under Municipal Solid Waste Management and Handling Rules, 2000 and directives of Hon’ble Supreme Court, all the citizens are to segregate the garbage at source.

The waste generated in Kolhapur city per day is 150-165MT. The contract was done by Kolhapur Municipal Corporation (KMC) with Zoom Bio fertilizer Pvt. Ltd. in 2000 and since 2003-04 it used to segregate biodegradable solid waste and for making bio fertilizers. But as the company went into liquidation, this project was closed in July 2011.

KMC had given a contract of collection and transportation of solid waste to Ramkey Group Pvt. Ltd. from 20^th Nov.2007 to 15^th August 2013. But the contract was ended by the KMC in June 2011 as the company was not lifting all the waste from the city.

Along with the increasing population more land is required for the disposal of solid waste and today there is no reserved piece of land for the treatment plant in city. The place at outskirts of the city, Top quarry is under dispute. There is resistance from people of that area and there is a stay order from Hon’ble High Court not to use that place for dumping waste. A land at Halsawade is allotted for sanitary land filling but it is under dispute and stay order has been given by Hon’ble High Court.

The centralized collection and processing has been failure and created environmental issues. There is a need to adopt decentralized composting at homes, apartments, colony, garden, institutes etc.

 The paper reviews the Municipal Solid Waste Management in Kolhapur and also shows the attempts made by citizens for decentralized composting.