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Strategies for Adaptation of Solid Waste Management Infrastructure in Coastal Areas to Climate Change

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Coastal, Harbour and Ocean Engineering (HYDRO 2021)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering ((LNCE,volume 321))

  • 112 Accesses

Abstract

Management of solid waste is one of the most pressing challenges faced by municipalities across the world. Increased consumption and improper disposal have led to the accumulation of solid waste in many urban areas, resulting in detrimental impacts on the atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere. In particular, coastal areas that accommodate over 60% of the global population face severe deficits in solid waste management, resulting in far-reaching impacts on water quality and the fragile marine ecosystem. The commonly adopted practices of uncontrolled burning, open dumping and unscientific landfilling contribute to significant emissions of greenhouse gases, leading to global warming and climate change. This article discusses the development and performance evaluation of a decentralized technology for management and resource recovery from solid waste generated in coastal areas, with increased resilience to climate change, by mitigating the greenhouse gas emission arising from the scenario of open dumping. The coastal village of Vichoor (Tamil Nadu, India) was selected as the study area, and the quantity and composition of waste generation were assessed. Baseline studies revealed an absence of systematic solid waste management in the study area. Organic fraction contributed to over 55% of the generated waste. An integrated municipal solid waste management scheme was devised, involving primary source segregation, collection, secondary segregation and resource recovery. Infrastructural provision for composting organic waste in a composting yard was adopted, which also doubled as a secondary segregation unit. Methane emission was assessed for scenarios involving open dumping of waste and windrow composting of the organic fraction. A reduction of 316.29 kg CO2 eq/T of waste was observed by adopting the proposed practices over open dumping, thus proving to be a potential solution to combat climate change due to greenhouse gas emission from solid waste management. Long-term sustainability of the system was ensured by active community level participation and revenue generated from the sale of recyclable inorganic fraction and the generated compost.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support received from India Additives Ltd. (IAL), Chennai, as part of the CSR Project. The authors are thankful to the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India (Grant Number: DST/CCP/CoE/141/2018(G)) for the financial support to carry out the present work. The authors also extend their gratitude to Prof. B.S. Murty (Project Coordinator); Mr. S. Yoganathan, Mr. R. Kaviyarasan, Mr. Varun Sridharan, Mr. Mohammad Dawood S, Mr. D. Kumaran, Mr. D. Kishore, Mr. G. Masanam (Project Associates); Dr C. Ramprasad, Mr. Manthiram Karthik, Mr. B. Sridharan (Research Scholars); Mr. B. Shivakumar, Mr. Aakash Dev (M. Tech. Students); Mrs. S. Poongodi, Mrs. G. Rekha, Mrs. M. Loganayagi, Mrs. P. Muthumaari, Mrs. M. Mythili, Mrs. Thamarai Selvi (Field Workers), for their constant support throughout the project.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, Chennai, 600036, India

    Anu Rachel Thomas, Mohammed Iqbal Thayyil & Ligy Philip

Authors
  1. Anu Rachel Thomas
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  2. Mohammed Iqbal Thayyil
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  3. Ligy Philip
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ligy Philip .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute of Technology, Surat, India

    P. V. Timbadiya

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai, India

    M. C. Deo

  3. Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, and Zachry Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA

    Vijay P. Singh

Appendix 1: Survey Questionnaire

Appendix 1: Survey Questionnaire

  1. 1.

    How do you dispose of the following garbage at home?

Types of garbage

Burn

Bury

Dump

Garbage

Truck

Recycle

Reuse

Compost

Other

(Specify)

River/

Lake

In yard

On road

Dump

site

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

Food waste

           

Yard trimmings

           

Paper/cardboard

           

Plastic

           

Metals

           

Glass

           

Sanitary napkins

           

Other households

           

2. Do you use a bin for the collection of garbage?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

3. If yes, how many?

  1. o

    One

  2. o

    Two

  3. o

    Three

4. If you use more than one bin, do you segregate and dispose of it?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

5. If you are not using a bin, specify how you are disposing of it?

6. Do you compost yard trimming at home?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

7. Do you compost food scraps at home?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

8. Are you aware of any health issues relating to garbage?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

9. Are you pay for waste collection services?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

10. Do you know about the segregation of waste?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

11. Do you know how to dispose of e-waste?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

12. Where do you store your garbage?

  1. o

    In a pile on the floor

  2. o

    Big oil tin

  3. o

    Iron bucket

  4. o

    Plastic bucket

  5. o

    Other (specify)

13. Approximate dimensions of container: Height ____ cm. Width ____ cm. 36 Volume ____ litres.

14. How much refuse do you collect in a day?

  1. o

    Quarter container

  2. o

    Half container

  3. o

    Three-quarter container

  4. o

    Full container Others (specify)

15. How much are you willing to pay for a proper solid waste collection system?

16. Did you sell scrap materials?

17. How much revenue do you generate from scrap materials?

18. How often is the waste from your house removed for disposal?

  1. o

    Once a day

  2. o

    Once in two days

  3. o

    Once in three days

  4. o

    Once in four days

  5. o

    Once a week

  6. o

    Other (specify)

19. Who removes the refuse from your house for disposal?

  1. o

    Householder sweepers

  2. o

    Other (specify)

20. How much do you pay your sweeper each month for removing refuse?

21. Where do you dump your refuse?

  1. o

    Open plot

  2. o

    Compost pile

  3. o

    Front of house

  4. o

    Roadside

  5. o

    Other (specify)

22. What happens to the dumped refuse?

  1. o

    Stays there

  2. o

    Removed by municipality

  3. o

    Burnt

  4. o

    Searched by scavengers

  5. o

    Other (specify)

23. Do you retain any material, either reusing it yourself or selling it; if so, which?

  1. o

    No

  2. o

    Paper

  3. o

    Coloured glass

  4. o

    Plastic

  5. o

    Clear glass bottles

  6. o

    Metals

  7. o

    Cardboard

  8. o

    Cloth

  9. o

    Food wastes

  10. o

    Other (specify)

24. For what price do you sell the articles mentioned above and in what quantity?

25. How often do you sell the above-mentioned quantities?

26. What articles would you store if they paid you for them? For what minimum value?

27. Have you heard about recycling & reuse?

28. Is there a difference between reuse and recycling?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

29. Do you support the idea of recycling?

  1. o

    Yes

  2. o

    No

30. Are you interested in recycling?

31. What materials make up the majority of your household waste? (Tick those applicable)

  1. o

    Wastepaper (e.g. newspaper)

  2. o

    Cardboard

  3. o

    Glass

  4. o

    Plastics

  5. o

    Kitchen waste

  6. o

    Garden waste

  7. o

    Fruit scraps

  8. o

    Others Please Specify

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Thomas, A.R., Thayyil, M.I., Philip, L. (2023). Strategies for Adaptation of Solid Waste Management Infrastructure in Coastal Areas to Climate Change. In: Timbadiya, P.V., Deo, M.C., Singh, V.P. (eds) Coastal, Harbour and Ocean Engineering . HYDRO 2021. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering, vol 321. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-9913-0_31

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-9913-0_31

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-19-9912-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-19-9913-0

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