Waste management involves the collection, disposal and recycling of various types of waste management by human activities. As population and urbanization continue to increase, effec-
tive waste management practices become more crucial than ever before. Members of the Outreach Sub-committee along with a few volunteers of the colony took up the initiative of making our colony “Zero Waste Colony”. They linked up with E Sree Foundation, an NGO supported by ITC Ltd. called Well Being Out of Waste (WOW) to enable the existing waste management system to be channelized by building awareness and motivating all stakeholders including the households in segregating the waste into different categories of waste. A meeting was held in the club with the Sanitation workers of our colony and WOW team in the presence of Outreach sub-committee. The first phase of the programme started on Mon,12 June which entailed door to door awareness and profiling of households. The WOW team along with our waste collecting staff visited all houses and explained ho wet and dry waste had to be segregated. Some residents were already doing so, therefore it became easier for the team to carry out the requisite task.
The second phase of waste management is to adopt sustainable waste management practices such as recycling and composting to mitigate the adverse environmental and health impacts. Organic waste such as food scraps and garden/park trimmings can be composted to produce nutrient rich soil amendments. The Committee is looking at the various composting options and wishes to have a sustainable one in place. The WOW team would also hold training workshops for home composting for interested residents. A Zero waste colony encourages composting at the individual and community level which will reduce burden on the landfills and also can be used khaad/manure for our Colony parks/gardens. Implementing the principles of Zero waste colony requires collaboration between residents and local authorities.
When we segregate the waste at the source, we realize our consumption practices. We should avoid single-use items and use more durable products. When we reduce the waste and reuse the waste will the battle be won. We should also establish recycling infrastructure and collection centers that ensure proper sorting and processing of recyclable materials. Let us as a community join hands in making the project successful. Kudos to the initiative and the members who started it!!!
