There are not many takers for at-source waste treatment systems in households in the city, going by the results of a survey by the Haritha Keralam Mission.
Only 30% of families in 38 divisions of the Kochi Corporation have home composting systems, revealing the poor response to waste management at source. The survey to assess the status of waste generated at homes and the treatment options being followed by people found that only 12,522 households of the total 41,364 homes had home composting methods. The details of the waste treatment scenario in other divisions are yet to be collected.
Bucket composting
Bucket composting is popular among families that have home composting systems. As many as 1,014 households use bucket composting to manage waste at source. Pipe composting has 816 takers. Vermicomposting is the third in the popularity chart, with 556 households using the method. While 389 households use kitchen bin, 383 homes employ vermicomposting. As many as 271 households have opted for ring composting.
The survey found that 25,686 families had agreed to pay user fee, provided the corporation entrusted the responsibility with agencies involved in collecting and transporting waste. As many as 6,911 households are ready to use waste for generating manure after dumping it in compost pits.
Meanwhile, officials said the government was working on a plan to promote at-source waste segregation and treatment. Local bodies have been asked to encourage households to set up kitchen bio-composting, pot composting and compost pits to treat vegetable and food waste.
The corporation and municipalities can also promote common composting systems involving households. Biogas plants or aero-bin composting methods can be used in such projects, they added. The use of home composting systems in municipalities and panchayats in the district has been found better than those used in the city. The survey found that 22,075 families in 75 grama panchayats used bucket composting method. Over 20,900 families treated waste at source using pipe composting method. As many as 34,855 households use kitchen bins to process organic waste. More than 24,223 households use organic waste for biogas plants.
