Coimbatore Corporation has partnered with German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) to propose the ‘Challenge Lab Coimbatore’ for identifying, designing and implementing data-based and resilient approaches for solid waste and wastewater management.
At the introduction of this initiative on Monday, Corporation Commissioner M. Prathap said that even as the waste gets segregated at the source, most of it gets mixed up at the transit stations. So digital intervention was required to effectively monitor the process.
Regarding solid waste, currently there is no direct connectivity between processes even though the garbage trucks are tracked using GPS systems, micro compost centre works are monitored, and we identified bulk waste generators, Deputy Commissioner M. Sharmila said.
Hence, GIZ will be studying major waste-generating areas and tracking behavioural changes in people. After the study is done, the company will identify key challenges across various stages of the waste management process — collection, transfer, treatment, and disposal — and develop digital solutions for technical end-to-end efficiency, she added. The company visited the Vellalore dump yard, the transit hub and the sewage treatment plant in Ukkadam.
They had put forth several successful methods used in other countries such as waste picking with artificial intelligence, drone tech to check landfills, boom barrier machines to control dumping in water bodies etc.
Regarding wastewater management, we have requested mechanical solutions for efficient reuse and geo-mapping of urban green spaces, Ms. Sharmila said.
The company will provide a framework for integrated management in June this year, she added.
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