t ~v,rvet-,,H ~Y J~

I -rV)~
.QP)-\ ~ )
10
o li d W a s te M a n a g e m e nt
S

INTRODUCTION
itie s tha t are no rm all y s olid
0, Solid wa ste s are
th e tot al waste s ari sin g fro m hu ma n and ani ma l a ctiv
wa n ted .
and hen ce are use les s or un
me ric al cen tre s a s we ll
het ero gen eou s ma ss of thr ow aw ay from ho use s of com
, It enc om pas ses the ust ria l act ivi ty.
s acc um ula tio n of a sin gle ind
as the nea rby ho mo ge ne ou
iety .
use rep res en ts the dry wa ste s or sol id wa ste s of the soc
• Ref
sol id wa ste s.
d int erc ha ng eab ly wit h ter m
, The ter m 're fus e' is oft en use tha n tha t of the dev elo ped cou ntr ies
an d he nce the
is gen era Jly hig her
• The den sity of Ind ian ref use nomically by me cha nic al tra
nsp ort (ca rry ing mo re
car rie d eff icie ntl y an d eco
Ind ian ref use can be
wt. for the sam e vo lum e) . t is hig h .
Ind ian ref use is mu ch sm all er, and its mo ist ure con ten
• The cal ori fic va lue of
~
m YPES OF SO LI D · W AS TE
wa ste gen era tio n are :
Iv. Major cat ego rie s of sol id

~ (E
nicipal wa ste s
( dus tria l wa ste s
('
aza rdo us wa ste s.
N.
Mu nic ipa l wa ste s of the city diff ers in cha rac ter isti cs. Th ere sol id wa ste r
• dice t nes & bb' h) dt h
So • ge ne rat ed fro m u.e ren zo . ras · _ .
• lid wa ste s des gar bag e ru is an
use (in clu
comprise ref use , ord ina ry ref mg collecbon and tra nsp ort rng
• lid t fro m the community req uir
, ~ rdo us so wa s e
• _ Re fus e,!e fer s to no nh aza . a nd
• to pro ces sin g/d isp osa l si te ]
hi d om pos abl e (pu tre sc1 ble) food, wa ste veg ela ble s
--- - • _
r-;:;--:- hig Y ec
l • llia rba ge com pri ses ite ms tha t are ·
· 1- g1ass , ru bb er , t m can s,
bl (no npu tre scib 1e) m a ten a
meat scrap;--~ ->
• 1

os ~l e ooden art icle s ' etZ 'I

dry , nond eco mp ~
• ~b bi sh con tai ns mo stl y - tex t• es, w . . rd wa s te (MS W) .
• l sti ble ma te na 1 - pa per , a 1 so
a so, or com bu f e d t'o as mu mc ;1p i

• B e, com mu nit y ref u s e can be r e err '

enc
342 _______
_ _ __ _ _ _
_ _ _ __ E
_N_V_IRONIVl tN ,
ln du st rinl w ustc' s
• lnd us lri ol wiu:;tcs ar o ge
nera ted from th e ind us tri
al ac tiv iti es or ma nu fac
• All th e th ree typ es of wa tur in g pr oces ses .
stes, so lid , liq uid and ga
• seous n.rc ge ne ra ted
lndustial wa ste s can be ca
tegorised as non -hazardo
wastes ha v e a po ten tia l us and ha za rd ou s. lt is we
for .very de let er io us impa ~I k'.wwn LhaL hn·1~1rdou~
cl on en vi ro nm en t and
• Some of th e common ind hfe in ge ne ral .
ustries wh ich generate sol
are : (i) Pa pe r an d pulp id wa ste along with 0th er waS tcs on a lar ge scale
(ii) Metallu rg ica l ind us tri
es (ii i) Pe sticides/Insecti
Plastics (vi) Refineri es cides (iv) Fe rli li'l.crs (v)

H az ar do us w as te s
• Ha za rd ou s su bs tan ce ca
n be defin ed as an yt hin
ch ar ac ter ist ics may co g which be ca us e of its qu
ntribute to inc rea se d mo an tit y, co nc en tration or
en vi ro nm en t if no t prope rtality, ill ne ss or hazard
rly stored an d transporte lo hu m an health anu
• As per th e Resource Co d or dis po se d off.
nservation an d Recovery
possesses an y one of the Act (RCRA), USA, th e ha
four ch ara cte ris tic s, such zardous wa ste is one which
• Ha za rd ou s differ in as, ignitabilty, corrosivity
form as well as behavio , reactivity or toxicity.
produced in liquid form; ur from or di na ry solid
however, the y ca n also oc wa stes. Th ey gene rally are
and radioactive. cur as solids, sludges, or
gases. Th ey ar c infectiou
s
• Some of th e common
industries wh ich generat
ind us tri es (ii) Foundries e ha za rd ou s wa ste are:
, (iii) Fertiliz er industries (i) Fe rro u s, non-ferr ous
(vi) Ch em ica l ind us tri es (iv) Ce me nt ind us tri es (v) Pe troleu m indus
tri es
CLASSIFICATION OF
REFUSE
Ba se d on th e ty pe of
l
wa st es
~ b a g e s: It includ
es all sort of putrescible org
like waste food articles anic wastes, obtained from
, vegetable peelings, fru it kitchens, hotels, restauran
hence, likely to decomp peelings, etc. Th es e waste ts
ose quickly, producing fou s are or ga nic in nature, and
in garbage) . Th ey may l odours an d he al th haza
also result in br ee di ng of rds (E xc ret a is no t includ
be disposed of, pr op erl y flies, mosquitoes, insects, ed
and quickly. W he n it is etc. Hence, garbage must
ob tai n some valuab1e pro scientifically processed
ducts ~~ ea se , fertilise and composted th en we
r, etc. from ga rb ag e.( Ei may
va rie s be tw ee n 45 0 to e density of garbage usu
900 kg/m3~ ally
~ sh e s: As he s ar e
th e incombustible waste .
in du str ies .~ e de ns ity products from he ar th s an
of ashes ge ne ral ly va ry d fu rn ac es , an d houses or
between 700 to 850 k g
Je iR ub bi sh : Ru bb ish inc /~
ludes all non-putrecible
rag s, pa pe r pieces, brok wastes except ashes. All co
en pieces of gla ss an d fu mbustible wastes, such as
[§ ub bi sh is light er . an rn iture, ca rd -b oa rd s, broke
d normall y ha s a de ns ity n crockery comes under .
varying be tw ee n 50 to 40
0 kgtm}J
Ba se d on th e so ur ce
Refuse may also be cla
ssified, depending on its
source, as:
(i) House re fu se (ii) St
ree t refuse an d (iii) Tr ad
e refuse
Th es e ter ms ar e se lf ex
planatory .
~o to : Th~ usu:i-density of refuse (mixture of --
all types of dry wa ste s) gen
erally varies be tw een 30 0 600
0~
.
 oLID WAST E MANA GEME NT
~ :_.: --- ---.:...::....:__- - -- - - - - ~ - - 343

orf-SITE ·SAN DLl~G . s nDA,. ....

• _ _ _
The handhn g. storn~e , and proces sing of solid w
~
----
·1,a•1:u1¾iBM
t'onal e lemen ts in a solid-w aste m aSles al the source befor e lhey a r e coll ec ted c1r<! t.h c
fnnc I . a nageme nl system .
n-sitc handl ing refers to th e activiti es a . .
O din the contain ers used for th •
Jace ssociale d with the h a ndling of solid wa s tes unt.11. th ey ar e
P · e handli ng may also be requ · e1r d storage before co11ection.
· - on
servic ' u-e to move load d Depend ing lh e type o f co 11 ec t 10n
·
e empty contai ners to the point where th ·
e con tamers to the ~ollection pomt · cl t
th . . an to re urn
ey are stored betwee n collect10 ns.
factors consid ered m the on-site stora e f li .
..) the contain er locatio n, (iii) public he;l ho so d waste_s mclude _: (i) the type _of contain e r to be u sed
(u . t and aesthet ics, a nd (1v) the collecti on m ethod s to be u sed ,.
On-site proce ssing metho ds are used t
e or to alter the physica l f Th O recover usable materi als from solid w astes, to r educe th e
vo1°: ' compa ction and • .
00
otr_
m . st
50 rtmg, , 1nc1ne ra 10n. e mo commo n on-site process ing operati ons include m anual
Proce ssing Techn iques
Process ing techni ques are used in solid
. . .. was t e manag ement system s to : (1). improv
. · · cy of
e the efficien
solid-wa ste disposa l _systems, (u) to recove r resourc es (usable materia ls),
recovery of conver s10n produc ts and energy . (iii) to prepar e materia ls for the

Importa nt proces sing te_c hni~u~ s used routine ly in munici pal solid-w aste
system s include ; compac tion,
t.hermal volume reduct ion (incine ration) , and manua l separa tion of
waste compo nents.
(i) Mechn ical volum e reduc tion: It is the most import ant factor
in the develo pment and operati on
of solid-w aste manag ement system s. Vehicle s equipp ed with compac tion
mecha nisms are used for the
collection of most munici pal solid wastes . Wastes are compa cted to increas
e the useful life oflandf i.lls,
(ii) Therm al volum e reduc tion : The volume of munici pal wastes
can be reduce d by more than 90
percent by incine ration. Inciner ation was quite commo n in the past, howeve
r, with more restrict ive air-
pollution control require ments, only a limited numbe r of munici pal incinera
t.ors are curren tly in operati on.
(iii) Manu al compo nent separ ation : The manua l separa tion
of solid waste compo nents can be
accomp lished at the source where solid wastes are genera ted, at a
transfe r station , at a central ized
processing station , or at the disposa l site. Manua l sorting at the source
of genera tion is the most positiv e
way to achiev e the recove ry and reuse of materia ls. The numhe r and
types of compo nents salvage d or
sorted (e.g., cardbo ard and high quality paper, metals, and wood) depend
on the locatio n, the opportu nities
for recycli ng, and the resale marke t.

METH ODS OF-· SOLI D W:ASTE COLLECTION

Collec tion, remo val and carri age of refuse

• d
• Reg ul ar co11ed10n an t ranspo rt of solid waste are mo st irnport unt operati . ons in any efficien t solid
waste manag ement w h 1c . h t about 80% of th e total cost of sohd was t.e manag ement
cos s . .
.
I n I n d ia . 11 ted in individ ual hou ses rn s ma ll conta m ers and from there it
• refuse 1s genera 11 Y co ec .
· ' . d d ·. •
is collect ed by sweepe rs m sma 11 h an d driven lorries /ear l s a nd th en ump e mto the commu nity
. . . - t ' d a·
storage bms made by mumc1 pa 11 ,es placed at interv a ls of 50 -2 00m cpen ing on t h e layo ut of
street and density of popula tion . . . . .
• The capaci ty of the bins may v ary f rom 100 to 500 litres d e pend m t; on th e qu a ntity ot zon e wise
waste genera tion.
344 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _E_N_VIRO Nrv,t"n
---:. ::__
r
•

•
l n cn 8 c {) f lnrg<' qu smt 1t y of putr<: Rc ihlc garbage from r esi.den
o n -si t C' f: t 0ra(! r
T h e w ost p fr om the comm u n ity storag e bins is collec t
tia) area, it, w ill b e appro pria te to follow

e d by _t ra~sp or t v ehicle s_ da ily for fin al

di.silOs a l or treatment.Co mbi n ed coll ection of garba ge and rub~is
a r e to b e r ec ycled, hom e owne r s ca n practi ce sourc e sep a rat10n
h_ is _more eco nom ical.If materia1s
I
1,e into p a per, gl ass etc .
• M e thod s a dopte d in India are not satisfa ctory and needs furthe
r i mprov emen ts and chang es .
Po ints t o b e t aken care of durin g solid waste colle ction

• Sprea din g or scatte ring of refuse while dump ing in the comm
unity stor age b in s by the hou se
sweep ers a nd street scave ngers shoul d be avoide d.
• Trans port vehicl es shoul d be clean ed period ically, thus avoid
heaJth hazar d causin g obnox ious gases.
ing decom positi o n and evolut ion of
\
• Comm unity storag e bins as well as transp ort vechi cles shoul
d have cover /lid thus r educing
in ciden ce of roden ts, insec t infest ationa nd unple asent sights
at the site .
• Trans port vehicl es shoul d visit the house s, twice a day, once
in the morn ing and once in the
eveni ng t o collec t house hold refuse and street sweep ings.
• Trans port vehicl es shoul d be strong , durab le and water tight
and made of stainl ess steel with
s mooth interi or having round corne rs and edges for facilit y
of cleani ng
• Trans port vehicl es shoul d have a low loadin g line (abou t 1.5
m), so that minim um of time and
effort is r equire d in filling them.
• Mech an ic al devices shoul d be instal led in these vehic les for
lifting the body to the sides or back
or fo r pu shing the refuse out in order to empty it quick ly and
easily .
• An o ptimu m collection route, partic ularly -for large and dense
ly popul ated area shoul d be selected
in orde r to optim ize the collec tion system

DISP O.S AL OF SOLID WAS T

Dispo sa l on or inside the earth is the only feasib le metho d for
the long term hand ing of the followin g
fr) solid waste s t h at are collec ted and are of no
furthe r use
resid ua l m a t ter remai nin g after solid waste s have been proce
(ii)
ssed.
(uj J resid u al malLe r remai nin g a fte r the
r ecover y of conve rsion produ cts and/o r energ y has been
accom pl ish e d
- - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
t.Jote : Lcnd f illing is the metho d of d isposa
- - - - - - - - - - -
l used most commo nly for municipal wastes ; land farmin g
well inj~ t,on ho '✓ e been used fo r indus t r ial wastes . Althou and deep-
gh incine ration is often consid ered a disposal method.
,t is, in r eol ,-ry , o proc.essing metho d .
- - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - ---
Point s t o b e k e pt in mind du r in,£ di s pos al of s olid wast
e
• Appr opri a te me t.h od of di spos ,d of sol.id waste sh ould be ch osen
a mong the m e thods discus sed in th8
secti on a h ea d i n order lo s a t is fy th e prese nt as w e ll as future
requi remen ts .
• It s hould no cr eatccn vi ro n rn e nt.al po llution and shoul d r esult in
recov ery of mater ial as well as
ener gy .
Most comm only emplo yed m e th od s for solid waste dispo sal,
practi sed all over the world are :
( IP WAS TE MAN AGE MEN T - --
~ : . : . : : _ : , _ . - - -- ~ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ __ __ :3~45
( .
.J (I Open dump mg,
( ) anita ry land fill,
C. eornposting,
(i ) Shre dding (or Pulv erisa tion)

( ) Inciner~tion,
0 yrolysis

ai'*' 1 :;·1,, Ya~- •t•P1, gn,e

, 14•ttN,.,od1ofiidispo
Oldest meth sing SW
• try.
• Very simp le meth od and comm only adopted in our coun
lying areas located far off from the city.
• SW colle cted from the city zone is dumped in low
mina tion of envir onme nt.
• Not an eco-friendly meth od and thus results in conta
htly nuisances, obno xious smel l and is a
• This ~eth od is hig~ly unac cepta ble as it gives unsig
breed ing place for fhes and mosquitoes.
rura l areas .
• The meth od is still in prac tice in semi-urban and

WMM1Jl•Jlilai'Mf,£'41NiitJAN!i·iilftm@~ ills include: (1) site selec tion, (2) landf illing
Important aspe cts in the impl emen tatio n of sanit ary landf
methods and opera tions , (3) occu rrenc e of gases and
leach ate in landfills, and (4) move ment and contr ol
of landfill gase s and leach ate.
ying areas unde r an engi neer ed oper ation ,
• In this meth od, refus e is carri ed and dumped into low'.l
designed and opera ted acco rding to acceptable stand ards.
uppe r layer s of the earth 's surfa ce.
• It invol ves a contr olled dispo sal of SW on or in the
to 0.6 m and after the days work when dept h
• The refus e is dump ed and comp acted in layers of 0.3
layer of abou t 15 to 30 cm thick ness .
of fillin g beco mes abou t 1.5 m, it is covered by earth
entir e site into smal ler porti ons)
• Filling is done by a grid patte rn, (ie dividing the
by move ment of bulld ozer s, truck s etc.
• Before dum ping the seco nd layer , compaction is done
surro undi ng area shou ld be left durin g fillin g
• A mini mum clear ance dista nce of 6m from the
opera tion of low lyiog area s.
ed to prev ent mosq uito bree ding .
• Insec ticid es like DDT, creo sote etc. should be spray
acted at the top of the filled up land in orde r
• Final cove r of abou t o 6m of earth is laid and comp
from burro wing into the refus e.
to finis h the comp lete ~era tion and preve nt rode nts
mpos ition of organic matt er in due cours e of time;
• The filled up refus e gets stabi lised due to the deco
nd s.
subs eque ntly getti ~g conv erted into stabl e compou

lvin g refu se stab •·1·1sa ion

·
Steps invo t'
ct phas es
• d of refuse stab 1'l'1sat·10n can be divid ed into five distin
The ent1·re perio
of
~) Aerob' b . . h. h domi nant deple te the avail able oxyg en to effec t oxid ation
· h f·11 ·
1c acter ia and fung i, w f 1c . are .' .
org · b. respi ratio n the temp eratu re m t e 1 mcre ases.
anic matt er. As a resu lt o aero 1c '
. . d lop to deco mpos e the organic matter; and H 2 and CO 2 gase s
(ii) Ana b ' eve
ero 1c and facul tativ e bacteria
-
346
- - -- - -- - - -- -- - ~ ----- -- -- - - --
ENV l~Ol\lfV! t N,

ar e thu s evolved thro u gh ac idog e nic

ac tivit y ·
...
(m) M e th a noge nic bact cn.a de velop to volution of methan e gas .
cau se e
(iv) Met han oge nic acti vity gets stabilise
d. .
.
(v) Met han oge nic acti vity subs ides · depletion of t h e or gan ic m atle r; a n d ull1 mat , •l
, repr esen ting · · Y. 1.h ,.
· · ns w1'thi n th e 1an d fill
syst em retu rns to aero bic cond1t10 1 · ·
__ __ _ __ _
- - - - - - - - - - - ----
Not e : The refuse. in managed landfills. : - - - - - -et s stabilised, with in a
per iod of 2 t o 4 ;;nth?
and sett le down by 20- 40% of its originalgen~rally 9 fll d up land can be used for deve lop·
heig ht. Hence. 1 e
som e gree n land, park s, or oth er recr eati ing
ona l spo ts.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- -- -- -- -- - -- - -- - -~
Adv ant age s
. . . .
(i) Thi s method is most simple and economi.cal. l tor equ ipm ent 1s requtred m this meth
No cost1Y Pan od \
.. ) Sepa rati·
(11 f · a l so no t equired in th is met hod .
on of diff eren t kind s of re use 1s
·.. r
•
(m) No residues or by pro duc ts left ouUevol · h'
ved mt 1s me thod , and hen ce no furt her disposal is required ,
·
(iv) Low lymg water-logged area s and odd \
qua rry p1·tsca n be easily recl aim ed and put to bett er use
Di sad van tage s .
(i) Low lying depressions or dumping site
s may not always be ava ilab le as they
or unavailable in futu re . may become scarce
(ii) The re is a continuous evolution
of foul gases nea r the fill site, especially dur
the refuse. These gas es may often be exp ing the tim e of dum ping
losive in natu re, and are pro duc ed by the
evaporating organic mat ter. decomp osing or
Oc cur enc e of gas es and lea cha tes in
lan dfi lls
The following events occ ur whe n solid was
tes are plac ed in a san itar y land fill;
(i) biological decay of organic materials (aer
obically/anaerobically) wit h the evo1ution
of gases and liqu ids
(ii) che mic al oxidation of was te mat
eria ls
(iii) esca pe of gases from the fill
(iv) movement of liquids cau sed by differen
tial hea ds
(v) dissolving and leac hing of organic and
ino rga nic mat eria ls by wat er and leac hate
the fill; moving through
(vi) movement of dissolved mat eria l by
con cen trat ion grad ient s and osm osis
(vii ) une ven sett lem ent cau sed by con
soli dation of mat eria l into void s.
Ga ses in landfills
• Gas es found in lan?frlls include air, amm
onia, carb on dioxide, carb on monoxide,
sulfide, methane, ~tro gen , an~ ?xygen. Car hydrogen, hydrogen
bon dioxide and met han e are the principa
from the anaerobic decompos1t10n of the l gases produced
org anic solid-waste com pon ents .
• The movement of gas in landfills can be
recovery . con trol led by con stru ctin g ven ts and bar
ries and by gas
• The movement of land fill gas es can be
con trol led by the landfill sea lan ts
• Com pac ted clay is mos t commonly use d
as land fill sea lant s
 soLID WASTE MANAGEMENT
347
1,ea
chate in lan d fills
L L achate may be d efi n ed as liquid th t h
~ Ived or su -spe nded m a t ena· Is from ~it . as percolated through solid waste and has ex tracted
• disso
I11 most landfill s, the liquid portion of th l h • h
, decompos1t1on .
. . o f t 11e wastes and liquid c
th theac ate 1s composed .of the liquid produced from t
h e
dr · · f 11 a as entered the landfill from external sources, sue as
surface amage , ram a ' groundwater , and water from underground springs.
nd s
, Under norm~l co ition , leachate is found in the bottom oflandfi.lls. From there, it moves through
• st
the unde~ly_m g rata ( althou_gh some lateral movement may also occur) dependin g on the
charactenstics of the surrouncling material.

, The use of clay l~ners or synthetic liners lik e geotextiles has been the most method favo urable
method for reducing and eliminating the percolation of leachate
, An import.ant method to control the production of leachate is to eliminate the infiltration of s urface
water from the landfill which is the major contributor to the total volume of the leachate . For this
we use an impervious clay layer over the top of the fill at a decent slope , provided with adequate
drainage and surface infiltration. \
Landfilling methods at sanitary landfill sites ( o+:;} J
'l The principal methods used for landfillingdry areas may be classified as (!) area method (ii) trencJi
method (iii) depression method

Area method is u sed when the terrain is unsuitable for trench excavation especially when the water
table is high
• Entire land fill site s is divided into no of sub-areas by constructing enbankments and roads.
• The sub areas are called sub-division cells or simply cells. Rest method is similar to as described
earlier

. . . .d U sUlted . to areas where an adequate depth of cover material is

Trench method of landflllmg 18 1 ea Y bl · well below th e surface .
. . h the water ta e I 5
available at the s1te and w ere fiJI •th waste cells of daily waste, scµera ted by
. 1
• In this method, a trench is excav~ ted a nd th en I e< w1
t h e earth cover, as descn·bed earlier .
 348 ENV IRONMENT

• Th e earth exca vate d from th<' tren ch . d

can hf' u se ·.1 . lni ly cove·r as well as fin al cover
to provJuc < •
the was te fi llin gs. on
•
• Othe r than the a dditi on of rxcavntion nnd s uhtrn
ct.ion of enrt l 1 imp orts for cover mate rial, th
e enti:re
meth od is exrn t ly \.h e sn mc ns desc ribe d earl
ier .

. - . ~ ----- -~ -
'. -~ ..-
· r:_·'. :.
-=- ---
- --.._-~--
·- ...---:.
. ;/

Dep ress ion met hod

• At locations whe re natu ral or artificial depr
essions exist, it is ofte n possible to use them effec
for land fillin g
oper ation s. Canyons, ravi nes, dry borrow pits, tively
and quar ries have all been used for
this purp ose.
• The tech niqu es to place and compact SW in depr
ession landfills vary with the geom etry of the site,
the char acte risti cs of the cover mate rial, the hydr
ology and geology of the site, and the access to
the site.
• In a cany on site, filling start s at the head end
of the canyon and ends at the mou th. This prac
prev ents the accu mula tion of wate r behi nd the tice
landfill.
• Wastes usua lly are deposited on the canyon floor
and from there are pushed up agai nst the canyon
face at a shpe of abou t 2 to 1. In this way, a
high degr ee of compaction can be achi eved.
... ~: DISPOSAL OF RE FUS E. BY COMPOSTIN
l
Compost ing of refu se is a biolo gical meth od of
deco mpos ing SW.
If the orga nic mate rials excluding plastics, leather
and rubb er al'e sepa rated from the solid wastes
and are subjected to deco mposition, eithe r aero
bically or anaerobically, the rema ining end prod
is calle d com post and humus. The enti re proc uct
ess involving both the separation a nd bacterial
conversion of the organic solid wast es is know
n as co mpo sting .
 oLID WA ST E M
_ A_N_A_G_E_M_E_N_:T_ __
~ - - -- -
Basical ly, com pos tin g is con sid ere 349
· d to be .
an d its reg u l ar t urm·ng, e1l
· h er ma
· d nu all anbaer obi c pro ces· s , b eca · inv
· olv es
of a1r an oxy ge n d u rm · g 1ts
· dec Y or use it pil ing up of rnf us~
am p ·r Y mec han ica l d
ant ino mycet es . 081 ev1·ces, so as to ens ure s uffic1e . nt
lon by bac te r i;i, fun gi and oth er sup ply
mi croorg ani s ms , like
Init iall y, the pro ce_ss sta rts wit
refuse) to car bon dio xid e and libh the m eso h ilic . . . . .
er ate h p bac ter ia, wh ich .
the the rm oph illi c bac ter ia tak ox1d1s e the org ani c ma t ter (m the
e eat . The ~m per
tem per atu re fur the r rise s to abo ove r and con tinu e thatu re d
rise s to abo ut 45° C, and at thi s
poi nt,
t 600 e eco · · D · h.
is sho wn by an app rec iab le fall u rnp os1 t10n . un ng t 1s pha se, t h e
in the · Aft er abo ut 3 we e k s, th · b·1 · d
• The fin al com pos t sho uld hav e · te mp era tur e of the com pos e com pos t 1s s ta 1 1se , an d t h 1s
.
. an ear th t ma ss
11
Y sm e and a da•rk bro wn col ·
• Mo istu re con ten t of the com pos our.
d
;:m:~•- •t'
10
b .
t
~• ~c:use_exhi?be~sive mo
w he te cienb. mho:s ur~ ml
ma ss h ld h
s ou ow eve r be con tro lled to ens ure
is tur e wil l ma ke it dif fic ult to ma
int ain
opt im um aer obi c
aer obi c con diti ons,
sot a aer o 1c 101og1ca actits bio log ica l life. A mo istu re con ten
ivi ty ma y pro cee d at t of abo ut 55% sho uld be esta blis hed,
11 __ .P 11 ,-,J....
( ~, "'- ~~ Y an op t i· mu m rat e.
Ca rb on -ni tro gen ra tio _t.~ j) '
•
con tmu e, sm ce the bac teri a use
-
CIN _of the ~n put ma ter ial in the
com pos t hea p is an im por tan t
fac tor for the bac ter ial act ivit y
to
nit rog en for bui ldin g the ir cel l
for food (as ene rgy ). stru ctu res (as pro tein s) and car bon
~T he ana ero bic bac ter ia, dev
elo pin g in thi s dig esti on, use up
car
3 0 : .1 k ~ .L ro
the y use up nit rog en. He nce , bon abo ut 30- 50 tim es fas ter tha n
for pro per dev elo pm ent of ana
dig est ive ma ter ial sho uld b~.bet ero bic dig est ion , C/N rat io of the
we en 30 to 50 for opt im um dig
(9 Wh en the re is too mu ch est ion .
of car bon , i.e. C/N is hig her tha
up and car bo n lef t ove r, the reb n the opt imu m, the n nit rog en wil
y lea vin g the dig est ion of org ani l be use d
© Wh en the re is too mu ch of ni.t rog en c ma tter inc om ple te.
i,.e. C/N rat io is low er tha n the opt
will soo n get exh aus ted and fer me 1 imu m, the n the car bon
nta tio n sto p, lea vin g nit rog en in
wit h fiy og en rm am mo nia (N H~ . Th is can lcill the dig esto r wh ich wil l com bin e
or inh ibi t the gro wth of bac ter
the me tha ne pro duc ers . ia esp eci ally
• The ane rob ic dig est ion wil
l req uir e an opt imu m-'@tN rat io
In Ind ia, the com pos tin g is pra cti
of abo ut 30- 50. 5'
sed in rur al are as on the mix
methods, wh ich are gen era lly ado tu~ ~-of nig ht soi l and r efu se.
pte d her e, ar e: (i) Ind ore pro ces Tw o
s (u) Ba nga lore pro ces s
Ind ore me th od f /f-0-( ~ 1"C /1 ~<Jd ~ .. _
• It
use s m a nu a 1 tur nm ·
g of p1·1e d up m as s for its dec om pos 1t10n und er aer obi c con d1t
..
• In th· 10n s .
1s me th o d 1aye rs of veg e t a ble w ast es and night soil a r e nlle rna
tively pile d in d ept hs of abo ut
7•5 to 1O cm e ac'h , to a t l d th of abo ut, 1.5 mi n a trench
to a e p ; or above the gro und t o for m a
cal led a win dro w . mound
• The mi· xtu re is k e pt aerob1· . · r egu larl y for 2 lo 8 m ont hs.
• Th" c by tur rnn g
1
. ft, f a not her abo ut l to l ½ m ont h
_s com pos t m ass 18 th en 1c s wit h
wh ich , th e c om pos t bec om es r dor f u se Th e ent ire pro sse s thu s tak out nn y tur n in g; a ftc 1•
e n Y or · es f\bo u t 4 m ont hs . Th is
rne tho d is pri m a rily a ero bic in
Ba ng alo re me th od
n a tu re.
l k>n V' C\. eJ1
lo t)
1
, 19
.
In this m e tho d, the r efu se a nd 1 11 t -1 ar e pi.le d up in lo ve r s m un und er gTo '-m d
n ~ soi · · ear the n tre nch
of abo ut 10 m x 1.5 m x 1.5
m.
 ENVIRO NMENT
350
~ depth a nd is fin a lly left over fo r
• Th is mass is covered at its top by layer of ear th of about l :J cm ' ·

decomposition . lace and organic matter begins

1,;,...
L-

• b. l · aJ action starts U:l)UJ,lg P

, Within 2 to 3 days of burial, intensive 10 ogic

to be destroye d. f th decompo sing mass to about

, .
Considera ble heat evolved in the process raises th temperat ure o e
e
. . b d troying the 1arvae.
75°C, thus preventin g the breeding of flies Y es f ll 8 tabilised and changes
, After about 4 to 5 months (dependi ng upon the season ) , the refuse gets u Y
into a brown coloured odourless innocuou s powdery mass, called humus. b k
. ed m sieves to remove stones, ro en g1ass,
, This humus is removed from the trenches, siev on 12·5 m h ty t enches can again be used
brickbats , etc., and then sold out in the market as manure. T e emp r
for receiving further batches of refuse. h h I d
, This method does not involve any turmng· ell. f th mass and is more clean t an t e n ore
or han mg o e
method.
, This method is widely adopted by municipa l authoriti es througho ut the country·
Mechani ca 1 compost ing plan ts
, All the operation s like shreddin g, grinding and separatio n of wastes are carried out mechanic
ally.
, The degradat ion of the organic wastes takes place in a rotating cylinder while it registers change
in moisture and air contents.
, Optimum moisture and air contents are maintain ed for better results.
, Approxim ately 60 to 70 tonnes of compost can be generate d from 100 tonnes of refuse.
• Large no. of mechanical compost plants in India are at Ahmedab ad, Baroda,C alcutta and Bangalor
e.

DISPOSAL OF REFUS:f; BY PULVERIZATION .

,In this method of refuse disposal, refuse is pulverize d in grinding machine s, so as to. reduce
its
volume and to change its physical character . The pulverize d refuse becomes practical ly odourless
and unattract ive to the insects.
• This pulverize d refuse, though contains fertilising elements like potash, phosphor ous, and nitrogeno
us
materia l, yet cannot be suitably used as a manure. It has, therefore , to be further disposed of
by
filling in trenches, or digested in open windrows or closed digestors .

1·,MS·Vt11•>1il@i•41f =ilfU9Bid,'Nit·Bl1fl·lilf diJ§QIQ?st·,51fi@

Incine ration ( tJz. fJ-t e-:1 ~ )
, On ~ of th e mos t effective methods of reducing the volume and weight SW by burning it in well
designed furn ace 8

• When th e avai lnble land is scarce, disposal requirem e nts ai·e str ·
. . . .
water 1s necessary, 1ncrn erat10n ts the best method for treatmen tmg ou t an d d cstruct10
·
n of toxic· -
of SW.
• There are m a inly stages involved is the process of incinera tiot fi . t d ·
. . 1 ll s rym g and then combusion ·
• Drymg and combus1o n may be accomplished either in separate ·l . . .
. . . ' 111 1 s as successiv ely m the same uni
·t
depencling on temperatu re c:oui,;trainl.$ uml control para me ter .
• Estimatio n of oxygen require ment and heat balance a rc ve ·t l t ffi .
incinerat ion process. h
ry v1 a ore 1c1e nt functioni ng vof t e
 OLID WASTE MANAGEMENT
~-- -- - --=------- 351
This method is widely used in count • 1.
• . . b nes ike USA w h th ..
hence are qmte smta le for burning. ere e calon f1c value of refu se is high and
~ Large scale air pollution particular} d .
e.'l' . Y ue to the em1 . f d. . .
with the incmerators ssions O wxins remains a serio us pro blem

Advantages
(i) Most sanitary method of refuse disposal d •
more than 80% volume reduction t k an ensur~s complete destruction of pathogenic bacteria
a es place by this process
(ii) No odour trouble or dust nuisances
- kers
(iii) Some cost can be recovered by selling the stea m power and c1m
Disadvantages

• • The process is a bit expensive and requires a lot of technical know how
, Solid waste to be burnt should have a high calorific value
• Smoke , odour and ash nuisance may result due to the improper and incompetent behaviour of the
plant
~ysi s l em 0 '2.. tAb.t ~ (y

• Most organic compounds can be converted into gaseous , liquid and solid fraction through a combination
of thermal cracking and condensation reactions in absence of oxygen. This process is known as pyrolysis
, This process is also known as destructive distillation
• It differs from conventional incineration· in a way that it is an endothermic process- requiring
continuous input of heat energy , while -incineration is an exothermic process ie the process gi ves
off heat as oxidation proceeds
Following three types of products are generated when the organic solid waste is pyrolysed
0 a gas stream containing gases like ~,CH ,CO,C0 4 2 and other gases depending on the characteristics
of SW
(ii) a liquid fraction consisting of a tar or oil stream containing chemical like acetic acid, acetone and
methanol

(iii) a solid fraction consisting of charcoal like product plus any inert material
352 ENVIRONME Nl

OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS

l. I'll ll ll\vi n g 1'lltn pn,lwn si\'t' as ln d o n ' rn,,th, ,d ,~ :, 1,

Wh h:1~ 1>1\P of t.lw {d) ,\ i ff1'l'l't d
clnK,t hrnt,ions is usPd for diffot'l.)111 t.y p l' S nf solid i,H'im-rnt.inn 1111•\ hlHI
w:u:tr s'! ·

(:1) Hfl$idl'nt.inl, 1'Pmnw ,·cinl nHd \1·1•11\11wnl 5. Which lH\\' t1f Ilw li)l11>win1:
1
~,~,tl 11wnts n.plm 11 ~
1

pln 111 Wl\i-(,,:; t lw \\'rm pyn.,ly sis'.

(b) Food. demoli tion t\.\Hl rnnstr nd.ion wnstPs (n) Solid wm-;k i~ h t'nkd in d,,:;,•1\ r11nl nttll'r~
in L\.XYf-rt'n • frt'f' nl m()s plwrt'
~c) M unic-ipnl. indns trinl nnd lrnv.mrlou~
wnsks {h) Solirl w :,:-11' i:- inri1w rnl1'd in l'l'l'Sl'l \\·,, 1,r
(\.~'l?\\I\
(d) Rubbi sh, s11t·dal wn~tl• s 1111d wnsll's from
Opi'l\ t1l\"!\S {l') W nsl,•w:,l1'r i~ t.1'\'11(1'1l wit.h 11xy ~1•11
(d) n isi-olvt'rl ~<,lids fro 111 wat<'r l\t'<' r1'nmv 1'd
Tho descri ption of solid w11slt' 1·1,lkdl' 1l is ns g-rowt.h in ntuw n n ormall y d1'p1'n<i'?
follow!- :
•H t
Nio·ht
U
. soil ,H, , G. 'l'hl' t111·m 'Hd11:--t' gl,1\\'rnlly do!'::: nnl inl'lu ck
Rubbi sh •10 t, (n.) pult'<'~c:iblt' solid wn:':l1'
n{'l..>t·i:- '.\[, t. lh) cxcr,,( n
Garb: ~1' •10 t (,·) rnin-p\l t n'~ci hh, svlid w n:-h'
Thl' nt-gnnic $O}ids in Uw ab1,\'1) composit.iou is (d) nshcs
(aj :;5 t (b) 60 t.
(c) 100 t (d) ?5 t. 7. Asse rtion (A) : Comp osti ng is t.lll' mo~t.
commonly used process for the docom positio n
3. of tJ1c organ ic com ponen ts of munic ipa l soli·d
l n n sn nitmy la ndfill. d eco mposi tion and wnstes.
ch e mirnl chan ges within organ ic .conte nt of
tJ1e solid waste goes on. Consequentf al clmng es Reaso n (R) : Btmg·a lore metl10d is a comm on
withi n la ndfill can be anael'Obic metho d used for biological convt>.rs1on
of organi c compo ne nts of munic ipal sohd
1. t emper ature changes within landfil l wast.cs.
2. produc tjon of gases like H 3 S, CO, Co3 and
CH4 8. Consid er the follow ing st.at.c ments : In solid
3. <lest.ruction of patho gens waste manag em ent
4. produ ction of other gases like S0 2 nnd l. densit y separu tfon of solid waste s can be
N0 2 accom plishe d by air classif iers
Wllic h of these st.ate nwnts nrc correct? 2. iron r ~over y from solid waste s ran bt'
(a) 1,2,3 and <1 (b) 1,2 and 3 done by magn etic separa tors
(c) 1 ;111d 4 (d) 2 and 3 3. nlumi nium S<'par ation from solid wast.e s
can be accom plishe d by eddy cu1-r,' nt
4. Bang a lore method :1nd 1ndorc metho d of separa tor s
dispo sing solid waste s arc Which of these statem ents are correc t?
(a) identical (a) 1 and 2 (b) i nnd 3
(b) differ ent as Ban galor e metho d is a n (c) 1 arul 3 (d) l, 2 a n<l 3
anaer obic method
(c) di fferent as Banga lore mc-t.hod doosw not ~). Which one of t h e follow ing metho ds of solid
cont-Ri n huma n excr eta wasto nui. nagon umt conse rves enrr gy most
 D WASTE MA NA GE ME NT
50L--I
;..- 35 3
oil?
[ficiently in the for m of gas or
rec ove ry 14. Wh at are the gas es
pro duc ed by lan dfi lls
~a) Inc ine rati on wi th hea t
Primarily com pri sed of?
(b) Combusting
en sul ph ide
(c) F1uidized-bed inc ine rat
ion (a) Carbon mo nox ide and hyd rog
xid e
(d) Pyrolysis (b) Me tha ne and car bon dio
nit rog en dio xid e
(c) Sul phu r dio xid e and
lan dfi lls con sis ts of (d) Eth ane and oxy gen
10 The daily cov er of MS W ing ?
· wh ich one of the fol low
wh ich one of the
(a) Compac ted soi l (b) Geornemebrane 15. Dioxin is rel eas ed dur ing
Geocomposite following pro ces ses ?
(c) Geotextile (d)
(a) Composting
pro ces s of com pos tin g (b) Inc ine rati on
ll. Ban gal ore and Ind ore ing ?
are which of the fol low (c) San ita ry lan d filling
(a) Both ana ero bic pro ces ses (d) Bio -fe rtil iza tion
(b) Bo th aer obi c pro ces ses
16. Th e lea cha te is an eff lue
nt fro m wh ich of the
aer obi c pro ces s,
(c) An aer obi c pro ces s an d following?
respective ly
(a) Sep tic tan ks (b) Sa nit ary lan dfi lls
ero bic pro ces s,
(d) Aerobic pro ces s an d ana (c) Co mp ost pla nts (d) Ae rat ed lag oon s
respectively
tem ent s rel ate d to
bee n seg reg ate d and 17. Which of the fol low ing sta
12. A solid wa ste sam ple ha s C/N (Ca rbo n/N itro gen ) rat io
is no t cor rec t?
bee n sub jec ted to
one of the c9m po nen ts ha s io lea ds to los s of
ult of ana lys is in (a) Lo we r ini tia l C/N rat
ele me nta l ana lys is. Th e res the rat e of
(40%) , H (6 .0%) nit rog en an d slo ws dow n
per cen t by ma ss rev eal ed C decomposition
the like ly wa ste
0 (44%), N(0 .3% ). Wh at is io lea ds tro cel l
component? (b) Hig her ini tia l C/N rat
(a) Food wa ste des tru cti on to obt ain nu trit ion
lea ds to low er
(b) Pap er and car db oa rd (c) Hig her ini tia l C/N rat io
the fin ish ed
con ser vat ion of nit rog en in
(c) Pla stic wa ste com pos t
(d) Le ath er wa ste to 50 is op tim al
(d) An ini tia l C/N rat io of 30
]

for com pos tin g

par am ete rs is no t
13. Which one of the fol low ing
iza tio n of sol id
included in the rou tin e cha rac ter n? 18. Two bio deg rad abl e com
pon ent s of mu nic ipa l
itio
Wa-ste for its ph ysi cal com pos sol id wa ste are
(a) Mo istu re con t:e nt (a) pla stic s an d wood
Cb) Density (b) car db oar d an d gla ss
(c) par ticl e siz e an aly sis (c) lea the r an d tin can s
(d) Energy val ue (d) food wa ste s and gar den
tri mm ing s
 354 ENVIRONMENT

GwsWERs) -
I. (c) . 6. (b) 11. (c) 16. (b)

2.. (d ) 7. (b) 12. (a) 17. (a)

3. (b ) 8. (d) 13. (d) 18. (d)

I 4. (b) 9. (d) 14. (b)

5. (a) IO. (a) 15. (b)