This exercise is an attempt to dissect and study methods employed by gated communities and apartment complexes on Old Mahabalipuram Road in their battle against waste. By the manner in which they have tackled unique problems in waste management, sometimes innovating considerably along the way, these groups serve as torchbearers in the zero-waste movement on the IT Corridor and surrounding areas. They have illustrated the power of a decentralised waste management system, whose motto is “Our waste, our responsibility”. In this series, every week, the waste management strategies of one community will be discussed. Ranging from eight-unit to 1750-unit communities, they are diverse in their constitution.
Beyond the unique approaches adopted by them to solve the problem of waste, they share these features.
1. A common colour-code based method for segregation of waste - using the 2bin1bag system (Green bin for organic waste and Red for reject waste; and White bag for recyclables).
2. Door-to-door pick-up of waste. This is essential as it ensures the ability to check compliance.
3. A dedicated bunch of volunteers willing to take time out to run education workshops for residents and housekeeping staff.
4. Incentives to the housekeeping team, which include distributing earnings from the sale of recyclables.
5. Engaging in meaningful dialogues with Corporation officials and ensuring their assistance.
6. Whatsapp groups called “Swachh OMR” and “Smart Sholls” as well as a facebook group Federation of OMR Residents Associations (FOMRAA) have all helped these communities exchange inputs and leapfrog challenges.
PELICAN NEST
Location : Okkiyampet
Size: 104 flats
Key results: With 50 houses complying with the request to segregate, three tonnes of waste are recycled every year. The community engage with local recyclers who buy the recyclable waste.
Success factors: The community has gone deep into recycling and their strength in this area is “meticulous segregation”. With careful segregation of milk packets, cardboard boxes, credit card receipts and even sweet wrappers, the 50 houses do not send a single piece of recyclable waste to the landfill. Children are also involved in this initiative, under careful guidance though.
The journey : Two resident-volunteers — Sumathi Kannan and Punitha Ramesh — have been largely instrumental in getting the residents to segregate waste and keep aside their recyclables. Sumathi Kannan and Punitha Ramesh would spend every other Saturday going from door to door, encouraging residents to keep aside their plastic and paper waste. They began with Paperman in September 2015, and when Paperman stopped offering their services on OMR, got the local kabaddiwala to come every fortnight and buy recyclable waste. From about 100 kg in 2015 from 20 houses, they now recycle 250 kg a month from 50 houses.
The road ahead : To take the next step towards becoming a zero-waste community, Pelican Nest residents are evaluating options vis-à-vis compost their wet waste in situ.
(With inputs from Varshini Neeti Mohan, a resident of Pelican Nest. In the following weeks, with inputs from residents of other communities, Ashwin Sekar, a resident of Ceebros Belvedere in Sholinganallur, will present the series.)
