The piled up garbage dumps and the landfills as huge as a mountain that we see in our daily life is a clear indicator for us to consider eco-friendly waste disposal methods. Waste disposal and management is a highly ignored subject, as a result of which cities like Delhi produce 9,000 metric tonnes of garbage everyday.
Efficient waste disposal methods and recycling can lead us to a bright “Zero-Waste-Future”. The eco-friendly methods of waste disposal require proper facilities for disposal of waste along with awareness among the masses.
E-Waste Management
E- waste refers to obsolete electronic waste and managing these wastes is an emerging task as the number of electronic items are increasing day-by-day. The major problem is that people are not aware of disposal methods for E-waste and separate collection of E-waste is not easily accessible. This leads to dumping of it in the landfill with the normal garbage. It can adversely affect our environment and public health.
E-waste like batteries and cartridges have toxic chemicals in them like Lead, Mercury, Hexavalent Chromium etc. The groundwater near the landfill can get polluted with harmful chemicals like Lead. If it is burnt, then it can lead to toxic fumes in the air.
Eco-friendly waste disposal methods
Firstly, reducing the amount of waste from our households is a crucial step. This can be ensured by some small changes on a daily basis. For instance, using a cloth bag while buying things instead of collecting many small polythene bags. Because these polythene bags bring in more plastic waste inside the house and it again becomes difficult to get rid of it in an eco-friendly manner.
If the provision of two separate garbage collections is available, then the household should use two dustbins. One for the recyclable items and the other for the non-recyclable items. Making a product out of recycled goods takes much less energy than making a product with new items from scratch. If there is a separate hazardous waste disposal site in the vicinity, then the hazardous items like paint cans, tyres, and bulbs should be disposed of there and not mixed with the other wastes.
Composting is a very easy and beneficial way of waste disposal. Waste from the kitchen like vegetable peels can be used as manure for the plants. Vegetable wastes have nitrogen rich minerals which makes the soil fertile and plants help to lower the greenhouse gases. It can be used for one’s own garden or can be donated as manure for a nearby park. It is one of the best ways for disposal of waste. Similarly, the green wastes such as trimmed grass from the garden can be used to feed the animals.
The huge landfills are a result of the excess of waste generated. Hence it is important to act responsibly and promote efficient waste disposal methods. Some small steps taken in our everyday life can make an impact on the overall environment.
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