It’s the waste no one talks about — used sanitary napkins, soiled diapers. Some residents throw it along with their wet waste, others mix it with the dry waste. “Waste warriors” have been toying with suggestions such as incineration or the adoption of eco-friendly alternatives, but say that unless there is a push to get residents to segregate sanitary waste, little will change.
The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) opened 22 sanitary waste collection centres in the city in 2013, but most are performing below their rated capacity, mostly because segregation at source is not taking place, said N.S. Ramakanth, member of the Solid Waste Management Round Table.
Residents complain that even if they segregate waste, it gets mixed by the pourakarmikas when they come to collect waste. “I segregate the garbage and take it to the vehicle which arrives every morning near my house. Surprisingly the person who collects the garbage mixes up this waste and dumps it in the rear of the vehicle,” said Pavan Kumar of Vijayanagar.
“We don’t have any idea with how to segregate sanitary waste, whether it can be treated as wet or dry. The two bins, one bag concept is not working,” he added.
Malini Parmar, a member of SWMRT, lives in an apartment on Richmond Road that follows two bins, one bag guidelines. “If you look into the two bins, one bag guideline, sanitary waste goes into the reject bin, which is bound for landfill. Sanitary napkins, diapers, medical waste, used syringes and bandages, and mixed party waste goes to reject.”
In the two bins (wet and dry) method, officials asked people to keep sanitary waste on top of dry waste. The two bins, one bag method would ensure that pourakarmikas know which waste is not to be touched. “We trained waste handlers not to touch the content in the red bin, and to tip it directly in their carriers,” said Ms. Parmar.
However, in the absence of 100 per cent disposal, this reject waste gets mixed with unsegregated waste from other parts of the city. And it is bound for a landfill, where in between it could lie on the street and cause infections to persons handling the waste.
Alternatives being consideredSince filling landfills with sanitary waste is a short-term solution fraught with health issues, trial pilots are on in the city to segregate and incinerate sanitary.
Pilot trials have been successful in HSR Layout, where 400 to 500 kg of sanitary waste is being collected and sent to a private contractor for incarceration. “Residents have to segregate sanitary waste, wrap it with newspapers and mark a red cross to show this waste is hazardous,” said N.S. Ramakanth, member of the Solid Waste Management Round Table. This is then collected separately by the pourakarmikas and taken to the disposal centres.
Residents of Yelahanka are also part of a similar pilot trial, and around 300 to 400 kg sanitary waste is collected daily from 11 wards combined, said Mr. Ramakanth.
Another solution being touted is the adoption of reusable napkins, menstrual cups and cotton diapers, which will eliminate the waste entirely. “The products available in the market today are user friendly and suited to the lifestyles of working women,” said Malini Parmar, a member of SWMRT. “It does away with the need to throw away waste entirely.”
People Speak“We are trying to make segregation effective and as a next step, measure how much of sanitary waste is being generated. We want to understand if our message is effective,” says Sathyanarayan Shankaran, member, Sanjaynagar RWA
“There is very little information on how sanitary waste should be disposed. Even if someone wants to dispose it responsibly, it gets mixed with other waste by the time it reaches the landfill,” says Pavan Kumar, resident, Vijayanagar.
Expert Speak“Switching to reusable products such as cloth pads, menstrual cups and reusable diapers will eliminate a large amount of sanitary waste, and is a healthier option for women as well,” says Malini Parmar, Solid Waste Management Round Table member
Reader’s mails
“We religiously segregate waste, including sanitary waste. But we suspect that it all ends up together in a landfill. It is discouraging for the meagre percentage of citizens who segregate waste, “ says Tanushree. R., resident, C.V. Raman Nagar.
“We have to wrap sanitary pads in multiple layers of paper. I shudder to think of the civic workers who unknowingly end up opening it to segregate waste. There should be a way to ensure it is collected and dealt with separately,” says Anjana Kumar Das, resident, Yelahanka.
Messages on Social MediaIt's necessary to have Waste Segregation implemented in Bengaluru
@CHANGEBENGALURU
I am resident of 3 cross, 4 block, H.B.R layout extn, Kalyanagar post. Though we segregate the waste nobody collects it daily, so I m forced to put it out in open. The collection van comes once in a week
@MONTY_CHADHA
