Solid waste management: Experts for transforming trash into useful resource

PESHAWAR: Environmentalists have called for promoting practices to transform trash dumps into useful resources through recycling for better and sustainable management of solid waste.

They made the suggestion during a webinar titled “Solid Waste Management in Pakistan” organized by the Institute of Urbanization, an organization striving for making cities green. “Our waste is a valuable resource, providing multiple opportunities like conversion of trash into organic fertilizer, biogas, production of different products through recycling and generation of electricity,” observed Babar Abbas, Consultant Lahore Waste Management Company.

“The transformation of waste into useful resources will create livelihood opportunities in the country and resolve serious environmental issues of lack of a proper solid waste management system which is also an international obligation for us in regard with achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” he observed.

“We need a lot of awareness for highlighting the potential of solid waste as a useful resource through which we can get useful soil conditioner and fertilizer by converting organic waste which can be utilized in different domains in terms of promoting agriculture and vegetation patterns in both urban and rural areas,” he opined.

He elaborated that being an agricultural country most of our waste was organic coming from livestock and farm houses which can be easily converted into useful products of bio-gas, which needed simple infrastructure to cope with energy crisis.

“Through the prevailing practice of dumping of the solid waste we are also burying tons of useful resources that our trash contains including combustible waste, non-combustible waste which is also called as organic and green waste,” he explained.

“Improper solid waste management is a major issue of public health concern due to its impact on the environment and needs to be addressed by government and at individual level as well,” observed Adeel Saeed, a Peshawar-based journalist with focus on environmental issues.

He added that around 50 to 60 percent of solid waste was not collected properly from cities and villages and eventually caused environmental problems due to littering polluting irrigation channels through passage in canals.

Adeel Saeed stressed the strict implementation of environmental laws, adding that people did not obey the laws and threw waste into irrigation canals. He appreciated the efforts of Institute of Urbanization for raising this important issue and said such initiatives would help promote innovative ideas for transforming solid waste as a useful resource.

Syed Hasnaian Raza, an environmental researcher said waste can be turned into a resource but its needed awareness, commitment and implementation.

He said that around one million plastic bottles were sold globally every minute and the size of plastic waste accumulation in seas was covering a large portion of water, which was a matter of serious concern.

He said in solid waste collection, smaller cities were ignored and major focus was being given to major cities. Hasnaian said innovative ideas about useful utilization of solid waste were being floated time and again but due to lack of proper attention these practices were not promoted. “We have to promote these ideas by educating the people for resolving environmental issues,” he recommended.