Final+Report

=Final Report: Waste Matters= Turning Waste Pickers Into Waste Collectors

** Problem **
The management of solid waste is a challenging issue that poor urban areas such as, Mumbai, India face. Essentially, human activities create waste and it is how this waste is transferred and disposed of, which poses risks not only to the environment but also to public health. Many factors contribute to and drive the problems of waste management such as increasing populations, government infrastructure, government aid and funding, lack of resources, and lack of awareness which influences communities priorities.

Solid waste includes: non-hazardous industrial, commercial and domestic refuse including household organic trash, street sweepings, hospital and institutional garbage, and construction wastes. The current situation that poor urban areas of Mumbai face is that the waste density is 2-3 times greater than industrialized nations and the moisture content of the waste is 2-3 times greater. Organic waste is not being separated from the rest which adds to pollution because it increases methane gas and carbon dioxide production. Dust and dirt (street sweepings) from the underdeveloped structures impede waste management and make living conditions more difficult.

A typical waste management system can be described by the elements: > Even more so, the transport of waste from households, factories, and other generation sites is also a growing problem. The rapid urbanization of much of the developing world leaves little time for adequate layout and planning. Garbage dumps, along with their disease, odor and frequent fires would ideally be located on land away from the most densely populated areas. In Mumbai waste pickers, who vary from age and gender, are paid $2 a day to collect recyclables and transport them to the plants. However, waste pickers and those living in the such poor urban areas are prone to health risks including:
 * Household waste generation and storage
 * Reuse and recycling on household level (includes animal feed and composting)
 * Primary waste collection and transport to transfer station or community bin
 * Management of the transfer station or community bin
 * Secondary collection and transport to the waste disposal site
 * Waste disposal in landfills
 * Diarrhea
 * Malaria
 * Polio
 * Dengue
 * Cholera
 * Typhoid

No matter how much these waste pickers collect, their city remains blanketed in waste.

** Solution **
As a group, we chose to implement the triple bin system, which includes: 1. Blue recycling bin 2. Green composting bin Composting is an ideal way to recycle organic wastes from your home and community. Oraganic waste can be put into the composter, rather than going to the landfill in a plastic bag. Composting turns kitchen garbage, garden residues, weeds, wood products, animal wastes, and many other normally unused materials into a dark, sweet smelling garden fertilizer. Compost provides nutrients such as nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus to your plants, which are necessary for growth. Not all food and yard wastes can be put into a composting bin; however, the following can: coffee ground and filters, f ruits and vegetables, egg shells, grass clipping, leaves, nut shells, shredded newspapers, fireplace ashes. Attached to the composting bin, which we designed is a lid, which clamps onto the bin, ensuring that nothing falls over when flipped over (an action necessary to make compost). The compost bin is also punctured with small holes in order to avoid unpleasing odour. 3. Grey waste bin

The bins are designed to fit into one another and stand 34'' tall. Each bin is made out of corrugated steel. Corrugated steel is currently used in such poor urban areas in Mumbai to build both the walls and roofs of houses. Corrugated steel is not only inexpensive and easily available but can also be twisted and bent in any direction. Cost? 1 ton of Corrugated Steel Sheet costs around 37,000 INR. Assuming that each bin weighs arounds a pound each, we would be able to produce around 2200 garbage cans. Each bin will cost around INR 15. Therefore, all three bins will cost INR 50, which is around $1.

By painting the bins in grey, blue and green it prevents rust from forming - water and steel are not a good combination. Even more so, the triple bins are designed to be 34" high. This level is easily accessible for all people, eliminating any unnecessary action.

__Process?__ The organization finds a location suitable to implement the new waste management system. The organization recruits waste collectors and trains them for the new system, offering them a job. Waste collectors transport the garbage to the landfills, and the recycling to plants, which specialize in the selling of recyclable material. At the end of the week, each waste collector gets paid $20. We would be able to pay the waste collectors $20 because the triple bin system will bring in more recyclables and will include paper, now that it is not contaminated. This pay turns out to be more than what "waste pickers" make in a day. The organization communicates with the recycling plant and recycling plant pays the organization for the pounds of recyclables that the collectors bring. This money that the organization receives from the recycling plant goes toward the collectors weekly pay.

Implementing this new process will: 1. Provide locals with jobs and a source of income 2. Provide a feesible way to organize the waste in households 3. Better the environment (through composting) 4. Prevent health problems, which waste pickers currently face