This document provides an overview of hazardous waste management in India. It defines hazardous waste and lists its major sources such as various industries. It describes how hazardous waste is classified and the importance of proper transportation and storage. The key aspects of India's hazardous waste management strategy are outlined, including waste minimization, treatment methods like incineration, and landfill disposal. Statistics on India's hazardous waste generation are provided. The legislative framework and rules governing waste management in India are also summarized.

1. HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT
IN INDIA

2. CONTENTS
 Definition
 Sources
 Classification
 Transportation and storage of HW
 HW management strategy
 Indian Scenario of HWM
 Legislative Framework
 Regulatory regime for Waste
Management

3. DEFINITION
Any residues or combination of
residues other than radioactive waste
which by reason of its chemical
reactivity or toxics, explosive,
corrosive, or other characteristics
causes potential hazard to human or
environment, either alone or when in
contact with other wastes and which
therefore cannot be handled, store,
transported, treated or disposed off
without special precautions.

4. SOURCES
 Industries: (Inorganic & Organic Chemicals) industries
produces 4.4 million tons of hazardous waste annually.)
 Petroleum: (Refineries are the major sources of hazardous
waste.The principal contaminants in refinery discharges are oil,
grease, suspended solids , phenols, sulphides and ammonia
nitrogeon.)
 Chemical: (Conventional pollutants include acids, bases,
suspended solids, oil and grease, organic carbon and nitrogen.
Toxic pollutants may include metals, phenols,chlorinated
hydrocarbons and PAHs.)
 Pulp and Paper: (pulp and paper mills may contain wood
fibers, finely divided solids, and a complex mixture of chemicals
used in the production process. Chemicals such as dioxins)
 Consumers: (solvents, old batteries, pesticides, cleaners and a
number of other household products.)

5. HAZARDOUS WASTE CLASSIFICATION
 Solid Waste
 Liquid Waste
 Gaseous Waste
 Sludge Waste

6. TRANSPORTATION AND STORAGE OF HW
 The CRADLE TO GRAVE concept
 HW generated at source requires movement by trucks to further.
 Requires serious care & attention while moving
 HW to be properly packed & labelled for transport to ensure safe
handling.
 Storage facilities are used to store waste temporarily before
treatment & disposal.

7. HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT
STRATEGY
1. Waste minimization
2. Detoxification & neutralization of waste by treatments
3. Destruction of combustible waste by incineration
4. Solidification or Stabilization
5. Disposal of residues in landfills.

8. WASTE MINIMIZATION
Following are the various approaches to waste minimization and its reuse:
 Alternative usage of waste products.
 Modifying production process.
 Altering primary source of waste generator by improving process
technology and equipment.
 Improving plant operations such as better house-keeping, improved
material handling, and equipment maintenance, automating process
equipment, better monitoring and improved waste tracking.
 Optimizing process conditions.
 Introducing substitute raw materials which have a lesser potential of
generating hazardous waste.
 Redesigning or reformulating end products.
 Segregating usable wastes and waste.
 Segregating waste and hazardous waste.
 Transferring the waste to another industry that can utilize it.
 Reprocessing waste to recover energy or material.
 Recycling potential waste or portion of it to the generator site.

9. TREATMENT METHODS
 Physical Treatment
 Chemical Treatment
 Biological Treatment
 Thermal Treatment

10. INCINERATION
 Able to achieve 99.99% destruction & removal efficiency of
hazardous components in waste.
 Primary products are Co2, vapour & ash
 Sulphur bearing wastes gives off SO2,CO2,H2O when
incinerated.
 By products of imcomplete combustion are sometimes more
harmful.
 Two types of incinerators: Liquid injection system, rotary kilns.

11. SOLIDIFICATION OR STABILIZATION
 Convert the waste into an insoluble, rock hard material.
 Additive materials used to reduce the mobility of pollutants
in the waste.
 Certain materials like nickel cannot be destroyed by above
methods.
 The residues that left out are solidified to reduce the leach
ability.

12. DISPOSAL OF RESIDUES IN LANDFILLS.
Landfills are necessary because one cannot totally eliminate
generation of hazardous waste and treatment technologies
produce residues.
Landfills involve:
 Low permeability soil linear and/or synthetic linear to
prevent seepage of leachate to underground strata.
 Drainage layer for leachate collection with leak detection
system.
 Diversion of surface run-of to avoid further pollution.
 Impermeable cover.
 Groundwater monitoring wells.

13. INDIAN SCENARIO OF HWM
The hazardous waste generated in the country per annum is estimated to be
around 4.4 million tones while as per the estimates of organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) derived from correlating
hazardous waste generation and economic activities, nearly five million tones
of hazardous waste are being produces in the country annually. This estimate
of around 4.4 million MTA is based on the 18 categories of wastes which
appeared in the HWM rules first published in 1989. Out of this, 38.3% is
recyclable , 4.3 % is incinerable and the remaining 57.4% is disposable in
secured landfills.
The amount of hazardous waste generated in this country is quite small in
comparison to that of the USA, where as much as 275 million tones of
hazardous waste were generated annually. India’s fragile ecosystem could be
seen from the following:
 Air pollution in India cities is highest amongst the world
 Over seventy percent of the country’s surface waste sources are polluted and,
in large stretches of major rivers, water is not even fit for bathing
 India has amongst the lowest per capita availability of forest in the world,
which is 0.11 has as compared to 0.50 ha in Thailand and 0.8 ha in China.

14. LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK
In India, a comprehensive legislative framework has been in place for
over a decade for addressing various issues related to hazardous waste
management.
Lastly, the rules framed by the Indian government for hazardous waste
management under the Environment (Protection) Act of 1986 are:
 Hazardous Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1989 (January
2000 amendment)
 Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemicals Rules, 1989
 Rules for the Manufacture, Use, Import, Export and Storage of
Hazardous Chemicals and Genetically Engineered Organisms or Cells,
1989

15. REGULATORY REGIME FOR WASTE
MANAGEMENT
 Indian waste management rules are founded on the principles of "sustainable
development", "precaution" (measures should be taken to avoid
environmental degradation and hazards) and "polluter pays" (polluter must
bear costs for damages and harm caused to environment by his own acts).
 Bio-medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1998
 The Batteries (Management and Handling) Rules, 2001
 The E-waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011
 The Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011
 The Hazardous Wastes (Management, Handling and Transboundary
Movement) Rules, 2008